Holiday Festivities
by Writergirl2011
Summary: RENAMED! Was Fall Festivities. It was a one-shot about their life married and with a daughter, but now I have changed it to be a story where I'll update every holiday. It's MERDER and really cute! PLEASE READ AND REVIEW! Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**I know I should be writing chapters for my story, but I got this idea while washing my car. This little girl, my neighbor, was outside with her dad enjoying Fall, so I decided to write this. (: It's a one-shot and MER/DER! **

**Background info: I don't know what year it is in here, but Meredith and Derek are married, for real, and they have a little girl who is about four years old. Hope you guys like it!**

It was Saturday afternoon and like most weekends, Derek had the day off. Once he and Meredith got married and started their family they worked out a plan with the Chief to get every Saturday off and some Sundays to spend with each other. The Chief understood that they wanted to spend time with their family since he had regretted not doing the same years ago. The only times they had to go in on Saturdays were when they had a surgery or were paged in, which was why Meredith was sitting next to him watching their daughter.

Meredith got pregnant around their second anniversary and they were delighted to welcome a baby girl into the world nine months later. Grace Elizabeth Shepard was born at a healthy weight and length and after staying at the hospital for the recommended 48 hours, they brought her home to their house.

They had built their dream house in just enough time to move into it by the time they were married. It was perfectly located on top of their land in Seattle and the view was beautifully seen from the living room, dining room, and their bedroom. The porch in the front wrapped around and a love seat swing hung from ceiling for Derek and Meredith to spend time in the evenings. They often used it whenever they needed alone time or when they watched their daughter play in their yard. Their bedroom was perfect for each of them, painted a soft green and with a balcony off to the side of the room which held the view of Seattle. The room was perfect with a joining bathroom that they shared and got ready together in.

They decided on adding five other bedrooms. One they figured could be a nursery, which was located next to theirs, and then the others could be for possible future children or turned into guest rooms or an office. On the first floor it contained an office that they both shared with similar desks situated across from the others, a play room for their kids that was painted a happy yellow color, a living room, a dining room and finally their kitchen. It was a big house, but it was a home and they loved it.

Since Meredith was at the hospital working on a tough Neuro case she had, Derek sat sitting on the porch swing watching their daughter. Her blond curls blew in the light breeze as the colorful leaves sat around her. Fall had arrived and it was actually a nice day with the temperature being in the seventies. Gracie sat scooping up the leaves around her and her bright green eyes looked up at him in excitement.

"Daddy! I jump in them when I done?" she asked excited for the fall festivities.

"Sure sweetie, but you have to make a big pile first." He told her with a smile. She nodded with a smile and began to collect them around her.

He couldn't get over how much she looked like Meredith. Meredith had complained all nine months she was pregnant, that their kid probably wouldn't even look like her. She claimed his genes were more dominating then his and each kid she popped out would be a replica of him. They discovered the day she was born that, that was not true. Gracie looked just like her mother, and Derek was thrilled about that. He had dreamed of creating a child with Meredith for so long and holding a little girl that held her features, and now he had one.

Gracie wasn't all Meredith though. Somehow she had caught her own version of McDreaminess and when she pulled it out, he was mush. That combined with her eyes and his smile, he caved in when he knew he shouldn't. She was beautiful and a perfect combination of her parents. She was so intelligent, like both parents, and inspired to be a doctor just like her mommy and daddy.

He pulled out of his trance when he heard her giggle. That too she had received from Meredith, and Derek loved it more. He loved hearing Meredith giggle; he would try multiple ways just to get it out of her. Now, he had two girls that held that laugh. The house echoed with that melodic sound every night as they had family time. He loved his life.

"Daddy! Look!" She called out to him as she giggled some more.

"I see sweat heart! You got them all in one pile. Are you going to jump in them now?" he asked from the swing.

"Is it gonna hurt?" she asked carefully.

"No, it won't hurt. You're jumping into a soft pile of leaves." Derek told her.

"Ok then." She said with a shrug and he watched as she concentrated on jumping. She looked like Meredith when she did that too.

She leaped into the pile of colorful leaves and let out that sweet giggle. A smile grew on Derek's face as he watched his daughter enjoy the season of Fall. They had picked pumpkins at a pumpkin patch a week ago and they planned on carving them after dinner with Meredith.

"How bout I help? Daddy will rake the leaves and you can jump in them." Derek told her walking down the porch steps and walked over to the rake leaning against the railing. He began to drag the rake across the dying grass and collected her leaves into another pile. They got into a rhythm as Derek raked and she continued to jump. Her giggle still came with each leap like it was something completely new to her, instead of something she had been doing the past fifteen minutes.

"Mommy!" He heard Grace yell and he snapped his head up in surprise and anticipation at seeing his beautiful wife. She had gone in early that morning to do an emergency surgery and she had been there ever since.

"Hey baby girl!" Meredith said with excitement as she descended from her Chevy SUV and wrapped her arms around Grace to pick her up.

"I no baby, I big girl now Mommy! I four!" she cheered with a smile.

"Oh, that's right! Silly me." Meredith told her as she placed a kiss against her sandy blond locks. "I missed you today," Meredith told her.

"I miss you too mommy, how comes you weren't home? It was a home day." Gracie asked her. It was hard explaining why some days were weekdays and others were weekends to a child, so in their household, weekends were called home days. Because on those days, you got to stay home.

"I know sweetie, mommy had to go to work for a little bit." Meredith said softly.

"To fwix someone's brain?" Grace asked.

"Yeah, to fix someone's brain." Meredith told her daughter.

"Ok, I playin in leaves." Gracie informed her mother.

"You are? Is daddy helping?" She asked looking over at her husband for the first time with a smile as she saw the rake in his hand. They exchanged a loving look and soft smile before Meredith returned her attention to her daughter.

"Yep, he rakin and I jumpin!" The little girl exclaimed as she wiggled around.

"Awesome! You better tell him thank you for helping then, right?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah, can I go play now?" Gracie asked meeting her mother's eyes that were duplicates of her own.

"Of course, after I get a hug and a kiss." Meredith told her.

The mini Meredith placed a soft kiss on her mother's lips and wrapped her arms around her neck to give a squeeze. "Wow! Such a great hug, thank you!" Meredith told her as she set her back on the ground. Gracie took off back to her leaves and her locks blew past her face.

"Hey," Meredith said in a soft voice as she came closer to her husband. He set the rake over against the railing again and wrapped his arms around her.

"Hey," He said in an equally soft tone as he buried his nose into her hair to smell the scent he loved the most. "How was work?" he asked as he pulled back slightly.

"It was fine, patient survived. It was just a really long surgery and took forever to finish charting." She told him with a tired sigh.

"We'll go to bed early tonight then." He told her.

"Oh, I don't think so. We need some Derek Meredith time tonight." She told him with a smirk.

"Oh, I like the way you think." He told her with a smirk of her own. He leaned in a placed a sweet kiss on her lips, but since they had been apart for so long this week because of work, it turned passionate.

"Tonight," Meredith told him softly. "Gracie is near." She told him with a little giggle.

"I missed you," he told her as he pulled her in his arms for a hug.

"I missed you too; I really wanted a day off to spend with you and Gracie." Meredith told him as she rested her head against his chest.

"Do you have tomorrow off?" he asked as he ran his hands up and down her spine in a soothing motion.

"Yes, thankfully." Meredith said with a sigh.

"We'll have a family day then." Derek told her.

"Sounds amazing." She told him looking up at him with a smile.

"Good, want to go sit on the swings?" he asked her.

She turned to look at their daughter and smiled as she seemed to still be amused by the leaves.

"Sure," she told him. He held his hand out to her and she grabbed it and walked to the porch with him. He sat down and instead of her taking the seat next to him she settled on his lap.

"Well then, this works." Derek said with a chuckle at her plopping down on his lap.

"I want you to hold me." She told him.

"Is everything ok?" he asked her worried.

"Everything is perfect. I just want to be close to you." She told him honestly.

"That's good, because I want to be close to you too." He told her.

She rested her head against his chest and breathed in his scent. Coming home to this after a stressful day always calmed her.

"How was she today?" Meredith asked.

"She was perfect," Derek answered.

"Really?" she asked. Gracie was a very well behaved child, but she knew that she could act up sometimes.

"Yeah, perfect. Like her mother." Derek told her.

Meredith burst into a fit of giggles at that comment and Derek sat watching her with love shining in his eyes.

"That is so not true." Meredith told him.

"Yeah, it is." He said with his own chuckle.

"Seriously Derek, you're already getting laid tonight." She told him amused.

"Ok, she was good. She always is, but she missed you and the stubborn gene came out a couple times." He told her honestly.

"I missed her too," Meredith said with a sigh. "I hate working weekends."

"Hey, it's ok. Her and I watched _Sleeping Beauty_ for the hundredth time and we played outside a little. She says that you're sleeping beauty." Derek told her.

"What?" Meredith asked with a smile.

"Yeah, you're apparently Sleeping Beauty and I'm the prince." He told her amused.

"Does she have a reason for that?" Meredith asked.

"I don't know, ask her." Derek told her, even though he knew the answer it was so much cuter when Gracie said it.

"Hey Gracie sweetie, come here." Meredith called out.

Grace pulled herself away from the leaves and strolled to her mother's side.

"What mommy?" she asked with her green eyes sparkling.

"What did you do today with Daddy?" she asked.

"Ummm…." She started, thinking hard about her day, "We ate bweakfast, then watched Sweeping Beauty, then pwayed outside." She answered with a smile.

"Oh, sounds fun! You watched Sleeping Beauty again?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah, it my favorite movie." She answered.

"Why do you like it?" Meredith asked.

"Because, the girl pwetty just like you mommy!" Gracie told her.

"Yeah Mommy," Derek told her in a husky voice that sent shivers down Meredith's spine. She shivered then pushed any other thoughts not pertaining to her daughter away.

"Thank you sweetie." Meredith told her. "Tell me what else you like about the movie."

"Well…the pwince and pwincess reminds me of you and daddy. They in love and kiss like you and daddy." She explained sweetly.

Meredith shared a smile with Derek and told Gracie that it was time to go in so they could get dinner ready.

The family of three sat around at the dinner table and listened to Gracie tell stories about things going on in her little life and Derek and Meredith laughed along with her and shared loving glances across the table.

They got Grace ready for bed together and tucked her in after a bedtime story.

"Good night sweetie," Meredith told her softly as she leaned down to her daughter lying in bed and placed a soft kiss on her head.

"Goodnight mommy. Tomorrow's a home day right?" she asked looking up at her mother with tired eyes.

"Yes it is, and mommy's staying home." Meredith told her with a smile.

"Yay," the little girl said in a tired voice.

"Goodnight Gracie bug," Derek told her as he gave her a kiss goodnight as well.

Meredith and Derek turned on the soft night light next to the door and exited together.

"She's so tired." Meredith told him.

"Must have been all that jumping in leaves she did." He told her as he pulled her close.

"Play time for us now?" Meredith asked with a smirk.

"Definitely about time." Derek told her with a smile.

They made their way to their bedroom and closed and locked the door behind them before turning to each other.

"Wait, I have to tell you something." Meredith told him before he could come close.

"What?" he asked worried.

"Well, I know we've briefly talked about it lately, but well…I'm…."

"Meredith…" Derek told her to get her to spit it out, now was not the time for a ramble.

"I'm pregnant." She told him.

"What?" he asked.

"I'm pregnant." She answered, nervous for his reaction.

"I love you," he told her as he moved to her and enveloped her in a hug. He kissed her passionately then pulled away. "I love you so much." He told her.

"I love you too. I'm glad you're happy." She told him with a smile.

"I'm thrilled. Maybe this one will look like me." He teased.

"Hey, I didn't even think she would, we got lucky." Meredith told him. "And you love that she looks like me."

"I do, I really do." He told her as he kissed her passionately again that led to them falling against their soft mattress and celebrating their news in adoring love making.

**There you go!! I've put off doing homework just to get this all out! (: I just got inspired and wanted to write a little one shot on them married with a child since my story is so far away from that. Reviews would make me THRILLED!!!! Thank you for reading!!**


	2. Halloween

**Hey guys!! A lot of you wanted me to have this be a real story, but I already have one going so I don't think I'd be able to keep up with both, but I was thinking of something else for it. I'm going to make it a Holiday story. So for every holiday, I'll make a chapter for it around then. So, since today is Halloween here is a chapter!! I'll just have it be left off from last chapter. Thank you so much for all the reviews I got from this story! It made me so happy, also to those who were happy I had Grace look like Meredith, I noticed that all the other stories have the kids look like Derek so I wanted something different. I think Meredith is very pretty and if a little girl looked like her, she would be adorable!! Enjoy!**

"I wanna go!!" Gracie demanded to her parents as she stood in the kitchen waiting for her parents to give her attention.

"Grace Elizabeth Shepherd. Do not yell or you won't go trick or treating at all," Derek told her firmly. She had been yelling for the past fifteen minutes about trick or treating, but it wasn't time yet.

They were going to Meredith's old house, which was now Izzie's and Alex's, for trick or treating and going around the neighborhood. Izzie and Alex were taking their three year old son, Gavin, and Cristina and Owen were meeting up to take their four year old daughter, Katie. All of them were planning on going together and they were meeting at the house an hour before trick or treating time.

"But I wanna go!" Gracie said with a pout as she crossed her arms over her chest.

They still had a half hour before leaving, but she had insisted right after dinner that it was time to leave.

"Gracie, you aren't even in your costume yet." Meredith told her daughter as she walked over and got down to her level.

"I wanna go, mommy." Gracie said once again with her mother's pout placed on her face.

Meredith turned her head to Derek to see if he saw the look she was giving off and he chuckled, "That's the look I get from you, you can't blame that on my genes." Derek told her with a smile.

"Gracie, why don't you go up stairs and get your costume then bring it down here so I can get you ready, be careful on the stairs though." Meredith told her daughter gently. Hearing the news, Grace's face lit up with excitement as she took off towards the stairs.

"I do not give you that look," Meredith told Derek as she moved back towards him and he wrapped her in his arms.

"Yes you do, all the time." Derek told her with a smile.

"Only when I want something you won't give me." She told him.

"When don't I give you everything you want?" he asked her.

"You refuse to feed me certain foods," Meredith told him.

"Oh, you mean candy and ice cream everyday?" he asked her with a smile.

"Yes," she told him.

"But you give me that look and I give in." he told her.

"It works; it also works when I want something else in bedroom." Meredith told him with a sly smile as she wrapped her arms around his neck and caressed the nape of his neck where a few of his dark curls sprung out.

He smiled at the feel of her hands running through his hair and gave her a loving look, "You never have to use that look in the bedroom." He told her.

"Oh, right. You're the one who gives me that look then." She said with a giggle.

"I think neither one of us uses that look then, we pretty much agree on that subject." Derek joked back.

"True, baby number two wouldn't be on its way if that were the case." Meredith told him and he smiled brighter. He loved hearing about their second baby.

"That is true; I'm surprised he didn't come along sooner." Derek told her as he rested a hand on her stomach where their child was growing.

"Me too with as much sex we have," Meredith said with a giggle.

"The amount of sex we have is a perfect amount," Derek told her.

"I think it's supposed to die down some once you get married and have kids," she teased.

"No, no, I don't think so." He told her.

"You couldn't last anyway," Meredith told him.

"I'm not even going to try denying that because you're right. I can't get enough of you." He told her with a smile.

"Hmmm," She told him as she rested her head on his chest. "We're not telling them yet are we?" Meredith asked talking about their friends.

"It's up to you," he told her as he wrapped his arms around her tighter. He loved their stolen moments like these.

"I think we should try to wait a little longer, at least till I'm further along." She told him.

"Ok, that's good. Have you told Lexie yet?" he asked. Meredith and Lexie had become closer over time.

"No, not yet. I will though, but I think I want to wait longer for that too." Meredith told him.

"Ok, we'll do it together and wait longer." He said.

"Ok, I love you." She told him as she looked up and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

"I love you too, so much." Derek told her before deepening the kiss. They heard the feet of their daughter pattering down the stairs and broke their kiss, but not their embrace.

"Mommy, I gots my costume!" she cheered happily.

"Alright sweetie lets get that on you!" Meredith told her with excitement.

This year Derek and Meredith agreed to let Grace pick out her own costume, and since she was obsessed with the movie _Cinderella _that was what she decided to be. Meredith placed a white turtle neck over her daughters head and then placed the blue dress over it that had a jewel with Cinderella's face on it. Grace looked at her mother with a smile and Meredith smiled back.

"You look so pretty sweetie!" Meredith told her daughter.

"Gracie you look beautiful!" Derek told her.

"Like mommy!" Gracie cheered.

"Yeah, like mommy." Derek agreed joining his family and placing a kiss on both of his girl's heads.

"Mommy, I don't like this shirt on." Gracie said referring to the turtle neck.

"But it's cold outside tonight so you need it on." Meredith told her.

"No," Grace said unhappy.

"Yes, I'm not arguing with you on this Gracie, it is cold outside and I don't want you to get sick. Cinderella wears a turtle neck under her dress when she goes out in the cold." Meredith told her daughter.

"Really?" she asked unsure.

"Yep, she doesn't want to get sick so she wears a warm shirt on under it." Derek told her.

"Ok," the four year old said.

"Good, are you ready now?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah!" She cheered excited.

"Ok, let's go!" Derek said with excitement and picked his daughter up as her giggles escaped her lips and he carried her to the car.

Meredith made sure everything was locked up and followed her family out to the car.

The car ride there Gracie demanded to listen to Taylor Swift, or Taylor Swiss, as she put it unable to say Swift. They listened to "Love Story" on repeat since in the video Taylor looked like Cinderella and Gracie belted out the words to the song, or the ones she knew. Meredith and Derek had grown tired of the song but Derek sung along to get Meredith to giggle.

They finally arrived to Meredith's old home and she looked at the house remembering everything that took place there in the past.

"It's so weird," Meredith said as they parked.

"What is?" Derek asked.

"Seeing this house, I mean that house was where I lived my horrible childhood, but all those memories have been replaced with memories of us and all my friends. It's just weird to return." Meredith told him.

"I know what you mean, I remember all our nights in that house." He said with a sly smile.

"I bet you do," She said with a laugh as she exited the car and opened the back door to get their daughter out.

"Gracie!" yelled Gavin as he emerged from his house dressed as Prince Charming. Izzie thought it would be cute for Grace to go as Cinderella and Gavin go as the Prince Charming.

"Gavin!" Gracie said excited as she greeted her friend.

"Gracie lets go inside, I have to put your hair up in pretties." Meredith told her daughter.

Gracie raced inside with Gavin and Derek grabbed her hand and walked up to the house with her.

"Happy Halloween!" Izzie cheered as they entered the house.

"Happy Halloween!" Meredith told her as she greeted her in a hug.

Derek made his way into the familiar living room and sat next to Alex on the couch to enjoy watching some sports.

"Hey man," Alex said as he offered Derek a beer.

Derek accepted it and took a sip before turning his attention to the screen.

"Gracie, come here." Meredith said as she sat down on the couch next to Derek. He placed an arm around her without turning his attention away from the T.V. and Gracie came to Meredith's side.

"Hi mommy," she said with a smile.

"Hi baby, we have to do your hair then you can go play." Meredith told her.

Grace sat on her mother's lap as Meredith wrapped Grace's blond hair up in a bun that looked like Cinderella's. "Mommy, my hair is yellow like Cinderella's." Gracie told her mom.

"Yeah it is." Meredith told her.

"And daddy's hair is like Prince Charming's." Gracie continued.

"Yeah it is," Meredith said with a smile.

"Maybe daddy is Prince Charming." Gracie said.

"Maybe, you should ask him."

"Daddy," Gracie said getting Derek's attention away from the T.V.

"Yes sweetheart." Derek said.

"Are you Prince Charming?" she asked.

Derek looked at Meredith's amused smile and he decided to play along.

"Only if your mommy is Cinderella." Derek told her.

"She has yellow hair like Cinderella." Grace said pointing out her mother's hair color.

"She does." Derek said in agreement.

"Then you guys are Prince Charming and Cinderella." The four year old declared.

The couple laughed at their daughter and shared a loving look before Grace got up off of her mother's lap and went to play with her friend.

"You're prettier then Cinderella." Derek told Meredith before pulling her close to him. Meredith let out a giggle and Derek's heart soared at the sound.

-------------------------------------------

"Is it time to go get candy?" Gracie asked an hour later.

"Yes it is. Your cousins and friends are finally here." Meredith told her daughter.

Lexie and Mark had showed up with their two year old son, Keith, dressed up as a cow. Cristina and Owen showed up with Katie dressed as a surgeon, of course, and the kids were ready to get candy.

"Who is staying to hand out candy?" Meredith asked.

"I am," Alex told them.

Derek loved going trick or treating with his family. He loved watching his daughter get excited about the amount of candy she could accumulate from the neighbors, and he loved walking hand in hand with Meredith in their old neighborhood. It was perfection.

"Let's go!" Izzie cheered with enthusiasm as the kids followed her out of the house.

The rest of the adults followed behind as Izzie led the kids down the street.

"I need a drink," Cristina said as she and Owen came up next to Meredith and Derek on the side walk.

"I can't believe you still don't like Halloween." Meredith said amused.

"What is to like? Little kids just go around begging for candy." Cristina said in her annoyed voice.

"Whatever Cristina." Meredith said with a laugh.

"Mommy, look!" Katie said coming up to her parents to show them the pieces of candy she had collected.

"Wow!" Cristina tried to say enthused.

"That's great sweetie, make sure you say please and thank you!" Owen reminded her as she left the group.

"I'm not surprised you dressed her up as a surgeon." Meredith told her friend.

"What? She has the potential to become one." Cristina said in her defense.

"So does Gracie, but we let her pick this year." Meredith said.

"Yeah, well she just picked her favorite Disney character." Cristina said.

"She says her mommy looks like Cinderella, she's convinced that Meredith is her actually." Derek said amused.

"She thinks Derek is Prince Charming too," Meredith added.

"What are you guys filling her head with?" Cristina asked.

"Oh come on Cristina, it's cute." Meredith said.

"Whatever." She mumbled.

"Mommy! I'm tired." Katie said breaking away from the group of kids to join her parents.

"Ok, we'll head back." Owen told his daughter picking her up.

"Mer, are you continuing?" Cristina asked.

Meredith didn't want to leave Derek; she loved Halloween for the sole reason of walking around with Derek as their daughter collected candy and had fun. "No, I'm going to stay." Meredith told her.

"Ok, see you back at the house." Cristina said turning away from her friend.

Lexie and Mark were ahead of them and Izzie was leading Gavin and Gracie around to houses.

"This is nice," Derek said.

"It is, but it's a little chilly." She told him.

He placed an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him to keep her warm.

"I love you," Derek told her.

"I love you too," Meredith told him.

They watched as their daughter went up to another house and collected her candy then said a polite 'thank you' to the house owner. She turned around and noticed a little kid who had dropped his plastic pumpkin filled with candy and bent down to help him pick it up.

"She's going to be a good big sister, right?" Meredith asked.

"She is, look at her now. She's such a good little girl; she's going to love being a big sister." Derek told his wife.

"We should tell her first before we tell anyone else." Meredith told him.

"Ok, whenever you think is the right time." Derek told her.

"Ok," Meredith said with a smile as she watched their daughter run excitedly towards them.

"Mommy! Daddy! I got a lot of candy!" She cheered.

"You did? Are you going to share?" Derek asked.

"Nooooo," She said in an amused voice. "Maybe you can have the icky candy." She said with a laugh.

"The icky candy?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah,"

"What if we want the good kind?" Meredith asked.

"You can have some mommy, but not daddy." Gracie said with a smile.

"Hey, why does mommy get some and I don't?" Derek asked his daughter with a pretend hurt expression.

"Because, she look like Cinderellie." Gracie said.

"Ah, I see." Derek said. His daughter was obsessed with Cinderella.

"Are you ready to head back?" Meredith asked her daughter.

"Yeah, I tired. Daddy, will you carry me?" she asked pulling out that look again.

"Not that look!" Derek said in a teasing tone.

"Daddy, carry me home too. I'm tired." Meredith said mockingly.

"Oh, you better not be tired or I'm going to have to pull that look out later tonight at home." Derek said in a husky voice and in a whisper so their daughter didn't hear.

Meredith giggled and promised her husband Halloween sex before he picked Gracie up and carried her home with Meredith's hand in the other hand of his.

They arrived back at the house and Gracie began to go through her candy with her parents as they looked over the candy making sure there wasn't anything wrong with it. She sorted out what she liked and what she didn't, and since she was like her mother, she liked almost all of it.

They gathered their stuff and said their goodbyes before leaving. Gracie fell asleep in the car and Derek carried her upstairs to her room and started to undress her and put her in pajama's when she woke up.

"Shh, sweetie. I'm just going to change you into pajamas." Derek told his sleepy daughter.

"I wanna sleep in my dwess." She told him in a tired tone.

"I guess that's fine." Derek told her, not having the heart to tell her no. She really did love that costume.

He placed her in her bed and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "Night baby girl, I love you" he told her softly.

"Night Prince Charming." She said back tiredly.

Derek turned on her Cinderella night light and closed the door behind him. He made his way to his bedroom after he checked everything down stairs and saw Meredith sitting in their bed reading a medical journal.

"There you are, did she stay asleep?" Meredith asked.

"She woke up when I was trying to change her and told me she wanted to stay in her costume. I let her since she's so obsessed with it and was too tired to change." Derek told his wife as he changed out of his jeans and sweater.

"She gave you the look," Meredith told him.

"Yeah, and then she called me Prince Charming." He said with a chuckle.

"She is really obsessed with this." Meredith told him as she set her magazine on the end table.

"Yeah, but you are more beautiful then Cinderella." Derek told his wife as he caressed her cheek.

"Are you trying to do the look?" Meredith asked him with a laugh.

"Is it working?" he asked her as he placed a tender kiss on her lips.

"It always works," Meredith told him with a giggle as he kissed her passionately and they celebrated Halloween in their own way.

**There's some Halloween fluff for you! I love writing Meredith and Derek married!! You guys won't get another chapter until around Thanksgiving. Unless, I am inspired or think of some other chapter I want to do before then. Hope you guys liked it! Send me some love please! **

**(: HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!! **


	3. Keepin the Spark Alive in Chicago

**Hey guys! I told you I wouldn't update unless it was a holiday, but I got inspired when I was in Chicago Saturday. I love that city and anyone who lives there are so lucky! Anywho, I decided to update. Here it goes, I kinda winged it. (:**

"Meredith," Derek called into the house on a Monday evening. He had just returned home from work and he knew Meredith would be in the kitchen attempting to cook a dinner for him and their daughter.

"In the kitchen, Der," She called out as she mixed a salad to go along with the spaghetti she made.

"Hey beautiful," Derek said lovingly as he moved over to her and placed a kiss on her lips. "The food smells good," he told her.

"I know. I made another meal of spaghetti successfully." Meredith said with a proud smile. Derek taught her how to cook spaghetti as a basic food a while back and now she made it with success most of the time.

"I'm proud, did you guess eat yet?" he asked.

"Nope, not yet. I was just about to call Gracie down for dinner. She's upstairs coloring." Meredith answered with a smile.

"How's our little baby?" Derek asked leaning down to place a kiss over Meredith's little baby bump.

"Good, I'm not so nauseated anymore." She said with a smile as she placed her hand on top of Derek's that was rested on her stomach.

"Good, that's good." He said kissing her.

"Yes it is, how was your last surgery?" she asked.

"Good, the patient lived. I was thinking though, we need a vacation." He told her.

"We do, but I don't think we can get the time off." Meredith said.

"What if I talked to the chief already and he said we could have a long weekend?" Derek asked.

"You did? That's nice. Where were you thinking of going?" she asked her husband.

"I was thinking maybe Chicago?" he asked.

"Chicago, we've never been there. At least I've never been there. Why there?" she asked.

"Because, I enjoyed going when I was younger and it's not as crazy as New York. It's nice, especially around the holidays." Derek told her.

"What about Grace?" she asked worried about how their daughter would be in a big city.

"I was thinking we could talk to Mark and Lexie, see if they wouldn't mind watching her for a weekend. You and I haven't had a vacation in a long time. We need to keep the spark alive." Derek said with a smile.

"Are you saying our spark is fading?" Meredith asked.

"Not at all, our spark will ever fade. I think our growing child inside of you is proof of that." Derek said with a chuckle as Meredith giggled.

"True, are you sure we should leave her?" Meredith asked.

"She'll be fine. Mark and Lexie will take great care of her." Derek told her.

"Ok, that sounds good. We're telling her about the baby tonight right?" Meredith asked.

They hadn't told Grace about the new baby yet since they decided on waiting a while longer, just to make sure everything was fine before they told her the exciting news.

"Yeah, we'll tell her about the vacation later. Too much information might make her go crazy." Derek said with a soft laugh.

"True, you want to go get her?" Meredith asked.

"Sure," Derek said leaving the kitchen.

Meredith was actually excited for their little get away. It had been so long since they had enjoyed a vacation all by themselves, this would be nice.

"Mommy! Dinner smells yummy!" the little girl said excitedly as she ran into the kitchen, her blond locks bouncing from their pig tails.

"Thanks baby girl, but remember no running in the house." Meredith told her.

"I sorry, we eat now?" she asked as she climbed up in her chair with Derek's help.

"Yeah, we'll eat now." Meredith said bringing the dinner over to the table. They served their daughter a small portion and she began to eat her meal.

Once they finished the meal they exchanged a look signaling that it was time for Grace to be told the news.

"Gracie, you know how you were asking about a little sister since some kids at day care have them?" Meredith asked, unsure how to tell her.

"Yep, Dillon have a bruder, but I don't want a bruder. That a boy and I don't like boys. They gross." Gracie said showing off her rambling talents.

"Right, well you are going to have a brother or sister in about seven months." Derek told her.

"How?" she asked confused.

"Well, a baby is growing inside of mommy's tummy and in the summer the baby is going to come live with us." Derek told her.

"A sister baby?" the little girl asked.

"Well, we don't know yet sweetie. But if it's a brother or a sister we're going to love it and you can play with him or her." Meredith told her daughter.

"A play buddy?" she asked in a high pitched voice.

"Yeah, you'll get to play with them." Derek told her.

"How it get in your tummy?" Gracie asked confused.

Meredith sent a nervous look at Derek and he turned to her with a smirk. Damn him, he was going to make her take this question.

"Well, mommy and daddy love each other so God decided that since we loved each other and we loved you that we could have another baby." Meredith explained lamely.

"Ok," Gracie smiled as she picked up her sippy cup and took a long drink of her milk.

Meredith looked at Derek and he gave a shrug. That turned out to be easier then they thought.

* * *

Meredith walked hand in hand with Derek as they walked the streets of Chicago. Derek had rented a car and actually knew how to navigate around the city well, which surprised Meredith. They were walking down Michigan Avenue and spotted a store she knew would fit their daughter perfectly.

"Come on Der, we have to go in." Meredith said as she looked up at the store.

"Come on, the American Girl store? You know how many little girls are going to be running around and screaming in there?" Derek asked.

"It's for your daughter's Christmas, are you really going to neglect that?" Meredith asked.

"Guilt trip," Derek mumbled as he led the way in the store and they were greeted by the noise of little girls excited for a doll.

"What are we doing in here again?" Derek asked.

"Gracie wants a Bitty Baby for Christmas from Santa. I thought since we're here and it's the actual store it would be more special to buy it here then over the phone or online." Meredith said as she pulled him towards the little baby dolls.

"Hmm, maybe it will get her excited about the baby coming." Derek said as he took in all the dolls staring back at him.

"Which one do you think she'd like?" Meredith asked as she took in the variety.

"I don't know, but I would say no to any doll with hair. After living with four sisters I learnt that the hair can be cut and that is not a good thing." Derek said with a smile.

"True, ok. We'll get this one." Meredith said as she picked up a doll that had no hair.

"It's cute." Derek muttered as he held it for his wife.

"I should get a picture of you holding it and in this store." Meredith said teasingly.

"You wouldn't." Derek said.

"I would. Let's find some cute outfits Grace will like." Meredith said leading her husband around the store.

After getting everything from the American Girl store that Gracie would enjoy, they finally left.

"Oh, let's go in here." Derek said with a smirk pointing to the large Victoria Secret store.

"Derek, I'm pregnant. I won't fit in any of that." Meredith said.

"Mer, come on. We'll find something, you aren't that far along." Derek said with a smirk.

"This is pointless Derek," She said.

"Hey, you made me walk around a doll store. This is my store, let me pick something out for my beautiful wife." He told her.

"Fat wife," She muttered again.

"Beautiful, now stop with the bad attitude. We'll have fun." Derek said grabbing her hand and walking around the store.

After picking out various lingerie they left the store and made it back to their car after doing some more shopping through out the area.

"Now what?" Meredith asked her husband.

"We'll go back to the hotel, rest a little, then go to dinner and then I have something planned for afterwards." Derek said with a smile.

"What is it?" she asked.

"It's a surprise." He told her.

"Uh, fine. I had fun today Derek, it was nice shopping with you." Meredith said with a smile.

"It was fun, we got a lot of Christmas gifts taken care of." Derek said.

"We did," She said as she rested her head back.

"How are you feeling?" Derek asked.

"Good, just tired. The weather is actually really nice, although windy." Meredith told him.

"It is the windy city." Derek said with a nod.

They arrived at the hotel and Derek and Meredith made it up to their hotel room and went to the bed to lie down.

"I'm tired." Meredith said as she closed her eyes.

"Too tired for vacation sex?" Derek asked as he moved closer to her and placed kisses along her face.

"Vacation sex?" Meredith asked with a giggle.

"Yeah, sex on vacation. You know, uninterrupted by a little four year old, we can be as loud as we want." Derek said with a smirk.

"Ah, I see. I guess I'm not too tired," she said giving into his kisses.

"So romantic," Derek muttered as he bent down and kissed her on her exposed collar bone.

"I love you," Meredith told him as his body covered hers being careful of her baby bump.

"I love you too, so much." Derek told her before capturing her lips in a passionate kiss.

* * *

"Dinner was amazing, Derek," Meredith told him as they exited the restaurant. The stars were shining above the tall city buildings and people continued to walk the streets as they enjoyed their evenings. Taxis honked out in rage, but other then that it was absolutely perfect. "Now what's my surprise?" she asked as she followed Derek.

"This," Derek said as they rounded a corner and Meredith saw a horse and carriage sitting there waiting for them to board.

"What?" Meredith asked shocked.

"We're taking a ride around the city." Derek said as he helped her on and then got on after her. He sat down next to his wife and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close.

"This is nice," Meredith said as they made it around the city, looking at all the lights. "It's so beautiful here,"

"It is," Derek said looking down at his wife.

"I love you," she told him as she looked up into his beautiful blue eyes that shined with love.

"I love you too Mer, you are such an amazing wife, mother, and surgeon. You deserve this trip." He told her.

"So do you Der, you make me feel so special, you're so great with Grace and I know you're going to be an amazing father to this little one." She said resting her hand on her stomach, "And you are such an amazing surgeon. You're incredible." Meredith told him.

"Thank you; I love my life with you. You make me so happy." Derek told her.

"Me too," Meredith said with a smile as she snuggled into his shoulder.

The carriage came to a halt and Derek grabbed her hand before stepping out and helping her down.

"Now what?" Meredith asked.

"I thought we could enjoy a nice walk through the city streets back to our hotel." Derek told her with a smile.

"That sounds nice," Meredith said with a smile. "This trip has been amazing."

"I agree, even though I miss our little girl." Derek said

"Me too, I can't wait till she opens her gifts on Christmas, she's going to love them." Meredith said.

"Let's go enjoy the gifts you got earlier," Derek said with a smirk as he pulled her into the hotel.

They were enjoying the time with each other alone in Chicago. They would always remember their wonderful weekend trip when they were busy with their kids. One thing was for sure though, their spark would never die.

**Thank for reading!! I hope you review!! I loved spending the day in Chicago on Saturday but I couldn't help thinking about this story and writing this. I hope you guys liked it. I appreciate any reviews I get for this story!**

**Also, I need some help with knowledge on the show for my other story. I want to get some things right…**

**Anyone know rather or not Meredith goes to see Thatcher in Season 2 or 3? Do the things with Thatcher and Susan happen before or after the Ferry accident? I need to know and can't remember. Thank you!**

**REVIEW!!**

**Melissa**


	4. Thanksgiving

**Hey guys!! I haven't written in a while but since Thanksgiving just passed I figured I'd write since I promised on Holiday's and any time I get inspired that I would write. So here you go! I hope those who celebrate Thanksgiving had a good one and enjoyed some delicious turkey! I give thanks to those who read and review and for the wonderful art of writing! Here is the update!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"Mommy!" Gracie called as she climbed off the chair at the dinner table and sprinted energetically over to her mother. Her blond curls flew past her head in a wave as she crashed into her mother's arms.

"Hey sweetie!" Meredith greeted as she picked up her daughter and placed soft kisses on her face. Meredith was at the end of her third month of being pregnant which still made it easy for her to hold her baby girl.

"Mommy, I was drawin you and baby a picture." Grace told her mother with bright green eyes.

"You were? Are you going to be an artist when you grow up? You draw a lot." Meredith asked her daughter as she tickled her tummy.

"No mommy, I wanna fwix bwains, like you and daddy." Gracie told her mom.

"Really?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah, can I talk to baby?" Gracie asked.

"Of course," Meredith answered placing her daughter down on the cool floor.

"Hi baby sister, it's sissy. I love you all the way to heaven and back. Keep growin in my mommy's tummy." She said as she ran her little hands over Meredith's stomach and placed a soft kiss on it.

"That was very nice Gracie, I'm sure she heard you." Meredith told her daughter.

"I'm gonna go finish my picture for her." Gracie told her mom with a smile before running back to the table. Grace was persistent and very sure that the baby was going to be a girl, mainly just because she wanted a sister.

It was the night before Thanksgiving and Richard had generously given Derek and Meredith the weekend off, he'd been doing that a lot lately. She entered the kitchen more and saw her handsome husband stirring something in the pan on the stove. She decided to sneak up on him. As she reached her arms around his waist and placed a soft kiss on his back, he tried to hide the little jump that came from him.

"Hey you," Meredith whispered in his ear and smiled at the shiver she felt run through him. God she loved that she could do that to him. Just like how he did that to her.

"There's my gorgeous wife, I've been waiting for you." Derek said with a broad smile gracing his lips as he looked down at his pregnant wife. No matter what she always managed to take his breath away. He pulled her close to him and placed a soft kiss on her lips before he felt his wife deepen it and slip her tongue into his mouth. He continued kissing his wife passionately before he remembered their little daughter sitting ten feet away.

"That was a nice welcome home." Meredith told him with a soft smile as she tried to catch her breath.

"Hey, you deepened it, you know I can't resist." He told her with a smirk and that spark in his eyes that she loved.

"I know, I just couldn't resist my sexy husband." She told him in a deep whisper as she ran her hands up his back and ran them through his hair. He shuddered again at the tingles that ran through his body and let out a soft moan at the comforting feeling. She let out a little giggle that he loved to hear and he had to pull his mind away from the dirty thoughts they were going near.

"Mer, you can't do that stuff to me, not when Gracie is in the room." He told her reluctantly.

"Derek, she's coloring and not paying attention to anything else." Meredith said as she continued to caress his head.

"No, Mer, stop." Derek said in a weak tone.

"Fine," she said in a hurt tone as she moved away from him. Derek recognized that tone and the hurt look on her face. He didn't mean it in a mean way; he just didn't want their four year old daughter to witness them in very adult events. The last thing they needed was for her to start asking them questions they weren't ready to answer. He hoped Meredith understood and her hormones were just getting to her.

"Mer, that's not what I meant." He tried to tell her as he pulled her arm so she would come back to him.

"No, Derek, I get it. I'm pregnant and fat and you don't want me right now. I get it, just get dinner ready." She told him moving further away from him and closer to their daughter. She sat down at the table and began talking to Grace as she finished her picture. Meredith complimented Grace on her picture and ate silently, not glancing at Derek through the whole meal.

She picked up her and Grace's plate and carried them to the sink getting them ready for the dish washer when Derek came behind her and placed his plate on the counter next to her, lightly brushing her arm on purpose. He couldn't stand the coldness between them all of a sudden and wanted non-hormonal Meredith back.

"Mer, please talk to me. I didn't mean I didn't want…"

"Save it Derek, I'll take care of the dishes then I'm taking a bath. You should go give Grace her bath, it's almost her bedtime." Meredith told him coldly.

Derek left the kitchen silently with Grace and began her bath, worried about Meredith still.

Meredith cleaned the kitchen up then started her bath and relaxed in the warm water before she exited the tub and put on a pair of sweat pants and an old t-shirt of hers', casting aside the shirt of Derek's she normally wore.

After getting dressed she exited her bedroom and went to Grace's room as Derek was exiting. "Is she asleep?" Meredith asked.

"Waiting for you, I read her a story." Derek told her watching her closely to see if she was better, when she passed him without another glance and entered Grace's room shutting the door behind her, he knew she hadn't.

He dragged his feet down to their bedroom and went through the motions of getting ready for bed. He pulled out a pair of pajamas and noticed that Meredith wasn't wearing the shirt of his she normally did. It was lying in their pajama drawer. He picked it up and placed it over his head, smelling the scent of his wife.

He went over to the bed and pulled the sheets down and laid down on his side waiting for his wife to enter their room so he could fix the mess he caused. She entered minutes later and entered her side of the bed and reached and turned the light off on her end table. She stayed on her side and Derek let out a heavy sigh, they never went to bed mad at each other.

"Meredith," he said softly as he reached a hand out to touch her lightly, afraid that she would pull back. When he placed his hand on her shoulder, he let out a sigh of relief when she didn't move further away.

"Do you really not want me anymore?" Meredith asked as she turned around and faced him, tears glistening down her cheeks.

"Of course not Meredith! God, I love you so much. You have to know that I want you, all the time. If it were up to me we would never leave this bed. I think you're gorgeous, and I love you so much. You have no idea what you do to me. I would never and could never turn you away." Derek told her while caressing her cheek. Meredith looked at him with glistening eyes from crying.

"But in the kitchen…"She started.

"In the kitchen, our four year old daughter was seated ten feet away. We don't need her asking anymore questions. I love you, I love you so much. Don't ever doubt that." He told her softly.

"I'm sorry, my stupid hormones." Meredith muttered as she pressed her head into his chest.

Derek let a sigh of relief exit his lungs as he wrapped his arms around her tightly, peppering kisses along her exposed neck. "I don't like this shirt." Derek told her fingering the shirt she was wearing to bed.

"Then take it off," Meredith told him looking up into his eyes daring him.

"Gladly," Derek said rolling her onto her back before pulling the hem of her shirt up and over her head, exposing her bare chest before he took his own shirt off and felt the contact of their bare skin against his chest as he lowered himself over her. Meredith reached her arms up and circled her hands behind his neck pulling him closer and kissing him passionately. They were better and tomorrow was Thanksgiving.

* * *

Derek woke up the next morning and smiled at his naked, pregnant, wife sleeping in his arms. They had had the best pregnancy, make up sex the previous night. He placed soft kisses on her bare shoulder to gently wake her up.

"Hmmm," she hummed not opening her eyes.

"Wake up, Mer." Derek whispered in her ear letting his stubble tickle her ear.

"Derek, stop that." She said with a light giggle.

"Then wake up," he said.

"No, I'm tired. And carrying your child…again." She mumbled into her pillow.

"You lover carrying our child." Derek said with a smile at the thought, he always did.

"I do, but it's sucking the life out of me." She responded.

"It's thanksgiving, you have to thankful for me." Derek said with a smile as he continued tickling her.

"Not when you're doing that." Meredith said swatting her hand back and forth to push his face away from her ear.

"I love you, and I am very thankful you are my wife and the mother to our children." Derek said in a serious tone as he placed loving kisses along her shoulder and neck.

Meredith smiled at his cheesy thankful speech and turn to face him. "I love you too, and I am also very thankful you are my husband and the father to our children." Meredith said copying his cheesiness.

"Good, morning sex?" he asked.

"Shower sex, before your daughter wakes up and burst in here with us both naked?" she asked him.

"Definitely." He said picking her up, eliciting a soft squeak from his wife as he carried her to the shower.

* * *

"Mommy, it turkey day?" Grace asked her mom later that morning when Meredith was helping her dress for the dinner as Derek was cooking.

"Yeah sweetie. Today we eat turkey and tons of other food, and be thankful for our family and friends and health." Meredith explained to her daughter.

"Ok, when people coming?" she asked.

"Soon, daddy is making the food for us and Aunt Cris, Uncle Owen, Aunt Lexie, Uncle Mark, Aunt Izzie, Uncle Alex, Uncle George, and Aunt Olivia are coming over soon."

"They bring kids to play with?" Grace asked.

"Yes sweetie."

"Ok," Gracie said happily as she sat down and began playing with her toys.

"Grace I'm going down stairs to help daddy, stay up here and play ok?" Meredith asked.

"Ok mommy." Grace said with a smile.

Meredith walked down the stairs and entered the large kitchen that over looked the city. There house was perfect, and since Izzie had made and hosted the previous Thanksgiving dinner, Derek and Meredith decided to host it.

"Hey, what can I help with?" Meredith asked as she entered and saw Derek preparing the food.

"Well you can start by kissing the cook." Derek said with a cheesy smile.

"Gag, that was cheesy." Meredith said with a giggle as she moved closer to him and placed a soft kiss on his lips. He went to deepen it but Meredith pulled back. He looked at her with a frown.

"Where did you go?" he asked confused as he opened his eyes and saw her on the other side of the counter.

"You're cooking." She said.

"Yeah, and I wanted a kiss."

"You got one." She said with a smirk.

"No, a real one." He argued.

"That wasn't real?" she asked.

"No, not compared to last night." Derek said with a dirty smirk.

"That was because we were having sex." Meredith answered.

"Will you just get over here so I can kiss you properly?" he asked annoyed.

"Fine," she huffed hiding her smile.

She walked closer and when she was within reach he pulled her close and kissed her passionately. Allowing his tongue to tangle with hers as his hands ran to her hair and pulled her as close as possible.

"You're going to mess up my hair." Meredith answered breathlessly.

"Don't care." He muttered before kissing her again.

"Derek, they're going to be here any minute. I promise you more Thanksgiving sex later tonight." She told him with a smile.

"Uh, fine." He said reluctantly letting her out of his arms.

"Ok, now what can I do to help?" she asked again.

"Well, something that doesn't involve fire, or many ingredients. So, how bout the cranberry sauce?" he asked with a smirk.

"Smart ass, fine. I'll make the stupid cranberry sauce that no one is going to eat." Meredith said with a sigh as she moved to the counter and began making it, concentrating on not messing it up. Derek came to her side and kissed away the line of concentration on her forehead.

* * *

Everyone had come and the kids began to play with each other in the play room as the adults talked and discussed anything besides medicine. That was their rule this year, even though Cristina wasn't happy with it, and so far they were doing well. As the turkey finished cooking they all sat around the living room placed with their significant others.

Meredith and Derek were seated in their chair with Meredith on his lap. The rest were settled around the couch, love seat and floor.

"I have an idea we normally do at my family Thanksgiving." Owen suggested. Cristina groaned and Meredith tried not to laugh at her friend.

Everyone looked at Owen to continue. "We go around and say what we're thankful for."

"Oh, we used to do that when I was younger." Derek added as he pulled Meredith closer and kissed her lightly on the head.

"Ok, I'll start." Owen said. "I'm thankful for my wife, my daughter, and my job." Owen said turning to Cristina.

"Yeah, me too" She added.

Meredith rolled her eyes at her friend and went next. "I'm very thankful for my wonderful husband, my beautiful daughter, the little one growing inside me," she said rubbing her stomach, "and my job." She finished smiling at Derek the whole time. She leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips.

"My turn," Derek said with a smile directed at Meredith as he gazed into her eyes. "I'm thankful for my gorgeous, sexy, wonderful wife, the daughter her and I created and love, and the little one growing inside of my beautiful wife…oh and my job." He added as he gave Meredith a long kiss.

"Ok, Shep, cool down." Mark said from the couch. "I'm thankful for my wife, the sex she gives me and our son and my wonderful job." Mark said, earning chuckles from the group.

"I didn't know we could add sex, I thought we were keeping it clean. I'm thankful for the sex, very thankful." Derek said wiggling his eye brows at his wife as she blushed.

"We know dude, the baby on the way proves that." Alex said.

Meredith and Derek both reached down to her stomach and rested their hands there. They shared a loving smile as they heard the timer go off.

"Time to eat," Derek said as he helped Meredith up carefully and held her hand as they walked to the kitchen and got dinner ready. Everyone seated around the table and got the kids' meals ready.

Meredith started cutting Grace's turkey as she sat in the little kids chair at the kids table.

"Mommy?" Gracie said.

"Yeah sweetie." Meredith said.

"Today we be thankful, right?" she asked.

"Yeah,"

"Well, I thankful for you mommy, and daddy, and baby." She said with a smile as she looked up at her mom.

"Awe, baby. I'm thankful for you too." Meredith said giving her a soft kiss on her forehead before she took a seat next to Derek.

"Our daughter is the most precious thing." Meredith said.

"She takes after you," Derek told her squeezing her hand.

"She said she's thankful for me, her daddy and the baby." Meredith said with soft tears.

"We have a lot to be thankful Mer," Derek said with a smile.

"We do, I love you." She said with a smile.

"I love you too." He told her before kissing her gently on the lips.

**Good? Bad? Tell me what you think!! Love hearing from you guys!!**

**Sorry it took so long!**

**REVIEW!!!!**


	5. Christmas Spirit

**Hey readers! I hope everybody is enjoying the holiday season so far! Here is an update to either start your holiday spirit or add to it, either way. The Shepherd family is preparing for the wonderful holiday! **

* * *

Meredith sat with her back up against the headboard and the flannel sheets pulled up to her chest as she sat and read a medical journal. She was nice and comfy in Derek's sweat shirt and a pair of loose sweat pants enclosed around her. The warmth and smell of Derek coming off of them made her relaxed as she enjoyed the readings of the human brain as she waited for her husband to come home from a long surgery.

Grace had taken a bath and gotten ready for bed easily since she was so tired from the days events. She and Gracie had gone out shopping for Derek, Cristina, Lexie, Mark, Owen, Izzie, Alex, George and all the kids that came with them. Gracie enjoyed picking out presents for her friends, but became grumpy when she discovered that she wasn't getting the same toys as well. Meredith made mental notes along the way of the toys Gracie really wanted for Christmas from Santa as they made their way through the stores.

Gracie through out the day continued to call it a girl's day and so to top it all off they had to stop and have lunch while they were out. Gracie loved it, and Meredith loved spending time with her daughter.

Once home Grace watched a movie then made it into a bath and bed easily with no troubles other than a couple tears about missing her daddy and wanting a good night kiss from him. Meredith promised her she would tell Derek to stop in and give her a kiss when he got home.

She heard the garage door go up and Derek come through the doors down stairs before she heard his steps on the stairs and then the creak of Gracie's door being open. He was such a great dad to Grace. He hated being away from her when he could be spending time with her at home, and he always made sure to go in and give her a kiss when he came in late.

She heard his soft voice over the baby monitor they kept in her room still and heard him tell her he loved her and would see her in the morning. The door to Gracie's room was then closed and she heard his heavy footsteps on the hard wood floor coming closer and closer to their room. She anxiously awaited his arrival as she waited for him to come in. She had missed him a lot lately. It seemed he was called in every Saturday for some big surgery he was currently working on, and at work their schedules never matched and they hardly saw each other.

She missed her husband greatly and she wanted to see him. Now.

He opened the door carefully, thinking she was asleep, and snapped his head up in surprise as he saw the light on by her side of the bed. He looked up and noticed his wife sitting in their bed, in his clothes, covered with their flannel sheets, and smiling up at him. God, she was beautiful. She was his, and he loved her.

"You're finally home." Meredith said from the bed as he stood in the doorway and took in the site of his beautiful, pregnant wife sitting in their bed. She was beautiful, and he was the luckiest man on earth.

"Yeah, I'm finally home." he smiled at her and made his way over to their dresser and pulled out a pair of pajama pants. He pulled his jeans off, threw them in the hamper much to his wife's enjoyment, and pulled on his pajama pants. He then pulled off his sweater and left his white t-shirt on before sliding into his side of the bed.

Meredith placed a book mark into the page she was currently on and placed the journal on her end table before turning to look at her husband. "How was work?" She asked as she lay on her side with her head propped up with her arm.

"Uh…long…too long. The surgery was long and painful, but the patient is alive, so it was well worth it." Derek told her as he lay on his back hoping the softness of the mattress would relieve all the pain working its way up and down his spine.

"Are you sore?" Meredith asked him.

"Very sore." He told her as he looked over at her.

"Lay on your stomach." She told him.

"What?" He asked her with a smirk.

"Lay on your stomach, and stop thinking of dirty thoughts. Take your shirt off before you turn over though." She told him as she grabbed a bottle of lotion off of her end table.

"No dirtiness?" Derek asked with the smirk still on his face.

"No, now stop it or I won't give you a back rub." Meredith told him. He quickly took off his shirt and flopped to his stomach before he felt his wife climb on top of him and begin rubbing lotion onto his back and massaging the tense muscles in his shoulders. He let out a soft moan at the feeling of her hands working their magic and felt the pain begin to leave his bones.

"That feels good." He told her as she ran her hands up and down his spine adding just enough pressure to relieve any tenseness.

"Good," Meredith told him as she continued to work her hands into all the tense areas she could find. She relieved all the pain from his muscles and just continued to run her hands around his back, knowing it calmed him from his stressful day. When she finally had enough of it she placed a soft kiss in the center of his back and climbed off of his back and slid down to her side of the bed again, rubbing the rest of the lotion on her hands into her skin.

"Thank you, you have no idea how much I needed that." He told her sincerely as he pulled her nearer, placing a soft kiss on her temple. God he loved this woman.

"I figured you could use one after being in surgery forever." She told him as she turned her head to face him and felt the sudden urge to kiss him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him lightly down to reach her and kissed his mouth passionately. She had missed him today, and so had he.

"I always love getting those, they're appreciated at anytime." He told her with a smile. "How was your day with Grace?" he asked her.

"Really good, we had a girl's day." Meredith said with a smile.

"Oh, really? How was that?" He asked her.

"Wonderful. We went Christmas shopping." Meredith said.

"For who?" Derek asked.

"Uhm…everyone. She really wanted to find something for her daddy." Meredith told him with a smile.

"Oh really? I bet it's perfect." He told her as he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her.

"It is of course, she totally picked it out on her own. I didn't help or anything." Meredith told him.

"I need to take her shopping for you." He told her.

"Don't make the same mistake you did last year unless you want me to know what you got me before Christmas." Meredith said with a giggle.

"I will never take her shopping with me when I pick out your gifts ever again. I can't believe she told you!" Derek said.

"Derek, she was three she didn't know. All she knew was that you got her mommy a pretty shiny thing so she told me." Meredith told him. "And I love my necklace still."

"I'm glad you still love it, but is there something in particular you want this year that I can get you?" he asked.

"Not that I can think of, I already have everything I want." Meredith told him with a smile and a soft kiss. "What do you want me to get you?"

"You already give me everything I need everyday, and you're caring my child. That's more than enough." Derek told her with love shining in his eyes.

"Don't be so complicated!" Meredith told him.

"Do you know how many wives would kill for their husbands to say something like that to them?" he asked her.

"Yeah, well you're my husband, not theirs." She told him.

"Don't I know it…and I love every minute of it. I wouldn't want anyone else." Derek told her honestly.

"Mmmhmmm, you better not." Meredith said before crawling back on top of him and kissing him deeply.

"Now dirtiness?" Derek asked hopeful as he circled his arms around his wife's waist.

"Now we can have some dirtiness." Meredith smiled down at him with a loving look in her eyes before she lowered her head and captured his lips in a deep, love felt kiss.

* * *

"Daddy! Daddy! Look at the snow!" Gracie called from the back seat of the SUV Derek drove down a Seattle street.

"I know, I see it. It's very pretty, but we have to be extra careful when it snows." Derek told her.

"Because it slippery!" Gracie finished from her seat with a smile. She was sitting in her toddler booster seat, strapped in with her winter hat, winter coat, and mittens keeping her warm. Derek couldn't help but think she looked just like Meredith when she that age.

"That's right Gracie bug." Derek said encouragingly. "What do you want to get mommy for Christmas?" he asked her.

"Uhm…."She said patting her lips with her small index finger, lost in thought. "Earrings!" she called with an excited scream and giggle.

"Ok, that sounds great." Derek said turning into the mall parking lot. "We're here, do you still have your winter gear on?" he asked her turning around to look at her once the car was in park.

"Yep, I was a good girl and kept 'em on." She said with a bright smile.

"That's great. I'm going to come around and get you, but what do you remember about parking lots?" Derek asked her.

"They dangerous. Cars go fast and fly by, I gots ta hold your hand the whole time, and look both ways before crossing the street." Gracie recited perfectly.

"Good job," Derek said with a smile before opening his car door and stepping out into the slushy snow in the parking lot. He made his way to Grace's door and pulled her out of her seat after unbuckling her seat belt. He placed her onto the slushy snow as well and she stomped her feet.

"Grace, no. Stop it, you're going to splatter the snow onto our jeans." Derek warned her sternly.

"Sorry daddy," She mumbled looking down at her snow boots.

"It's ok sweetie, just don't do it again. Let's go!" he told her grabbing her mitten clad hand and beginning to walk through the parking lot madness.

After conquering the parking lot in one piece, they made their way into the mall, where Derek picked Gracie up and carried her, afraid that she would get stepped on by the crazy mall shoppers. They made their way to Kay's jewelers where Derek decided he'd let Grace pick out a pair of ear rings for Meredith.

"Ok Grace, look at the pretty ear rings and tell me which ones you want to get mommy." Derek told her.

He showed her the selection, keeping it to a minimum of just the plain diamonds, Meredith's birthstone, and pearls. He didn't want to overwhelm her with the selection since after all she was only four. He knew Meredith was never into wearing jewelry before, but once they got married and she started wearing her wedding band, he noticed she was fine with wearing jewelry just as long as it wasn't flashy.

"What do you think about these?" Derek asked her as he pointed to the emerald diamonded earrings.

"No, they don't sparkle." She told him.

Derek chuckled at her reasoning and took her to the pearled earrings. "What about these?" he asked again.

"Noooo daddy, they don't look pretty!" she told him in true girl fashion. He shook his head at the little girl she was already becoming and took her to the last display of diamonds.

"Any of these my girly girl?" he asked her as he tickled her tummy. She let out that beautiful giggle she inherited from her mother and took a look at the earrings.

"They sparkle daddy, and these look like something a Princess would wear…like Cinderella!" she told him.

"Ok, so you like the diamonds?" he asked her.

"Yep!" she told him.

"Ok, which ones Gracie?" As he pointed to the variety in size.

"Those!" she pointed to a pair in the middle, which didn't look too big or small.

Derek agreed and got the attention of a sales lady that was near by. "Hello, how can I help you?" she asked with a smile looking up at Derek. He was used to this, for some reason women always stared at him. Meredith repeatedly told him it was because of the McDreaminess, but he made sure to point out that he only brought the McDreaminesss out on her, no other woman. He definitely didn't want anyone else, Meredith was it for him.

"Hi, my daughter and I would like to look at these pair of earrings for my wife." Derek told her elaborating the words 'daughter' and 'wife'.

"Oh, of course!" the woman said as she pulled the sliding doors to the case back and pulled out the earrings Derek and Grace had been looking at.

Derek picked them up to look at them and noticed they were 1 carat, with white gold. Perfect for Meredith, not flashy but beautiful at the same time.

"What do you think Gracie?" Derek asked his daughter.

"They're pretty!" She said with a smile, nodding her head in approval.

"Good, we'll get them." Derek told the lady.

It took her longer than Derek expected to finalize the purchase, but once they did Derek took Grace and their purchase and made their way to the food court. He promised Grace some hot chocolate before they left. He stood in line with her at Starbuck's and ordered her a hot chocolate and him a small coffee. They sat down and enjoyed their drinks as she rambled on about her day at day care.

Meredith had a late night that night so that's why Derek decided to get Grace from day care and take her to the mall for Meredith's gift. He just needed to find a time when he could get out of the house and get Meredith her own gift with out Grace, or Meredith knowing. He couldn't shop with Grace for it because he knew she'd tell Meredith what he got her.

After they finished their drinks they made their way out of the mall again and into the car. Setting off to their warm, toasty house.

* * *

"Where mommy?" Grace asked as she watched Derek wrap the earrings they had just purchased so Meredith couldn't snoop later.

"Work, she should be home in a half hour." Derek told her. "Now you remember what I told you about this gift?" Derek asked.

"That it's mommy's and we can't tell her what we got her." Grace told him.

"Good, so she should be very surprised on Christmas morning when she opens them." Derek told her.

"Daddy, why doesn't Santa bring you or mommy gifts? Are you bad boys and girls?" Grace asked her dad.

Derek thought about that, he hadn't thought of that being a question she'd bring up…and he also had never wondered that when he was a kid.

"Well, because Santa only brings toys to little boys and girls. If he were to give gifts to mommies, daddies and little kids then that would be too many gifts. So he just gives to the little boys' and girls' who are good." Derek explained…or tried to anyway.

"Ok," She said before scampering off to the play room to find a toy to play with.

Derek finished wrapping Meredith's gift in a larger box then what was needed, but that was so she couldn't guess what it was, and placed it under their big tree that stood tall in the living room. Grace, Derek and Meredith had found it on their land and cut it down. It was the perfect size and they decorated it with colored lights and all the ornaments they accumulated.

"Mommy's home!" Meredith called from the front door.

"Mommy!" Gracie cheered as she ran down the hall and into her mother's arms.

"Hi sweetie!" Meredith said with a smile as she picked her daughter up and kissed her on the cheek. "What did you do with daddy today?"

Derek sent a look to Grace and prayed she wouldn't spill the beans. "I colored and watched TV." Grace told her mom.

Derek smiled and walked over to his wife and daughter. "That's right, we had a good evening. How was work?" he asked.

"Ugh, work." She said before placing Grace back on the floor so she could back to the play room.

"Well, you're home now. What do you and baby want for dinner?" he asked with a smile before placing his hand on her stomach to pat it lovingly.

"Spaghetti." She answered with a smile. Derek placed a loving kiss on her lips before nodding and turning to the kitchen.

Meredith followed him into the kitchen and sat on a bar stool to watch him cook.

"So, we should go shopping for Grace this weekend, she can spend the night at Cristina's or something." Meredith told him.

"That sounds great." Derek said, turning around with a smirk.

"God, do you only think about sex?" she asked him with a teasing smile.

"Only with you my dear," he said with a wink.

"Whatever." She said as she noticed he made his way to her.

"I love you Meredith Shepherd." He told her kissing her forehead, cheeks, and then finally her lips.

"I love you too, Derek Shepherd." She said with giggle.

* * *

**Merry ALMOST Christmas!! ( : I'm so excited! Shopping has been crazy, but it's all worth it in the end. I hope you guys have a great Christmas, expect another update around Christmas, maybe a little later. I hope you liked it and REVIEW please!!**


	6. Christmas

**Thank you to those who reviewed and even those who read! I appreciate it. I was asked if I could update this story more often, although I am very flattered you like my story so much you want more, I really don't think I could. I love how I only update on Holidays or any time I get inspiration. It gives me plenty of time to think of how I want to write the chapters. Also, I have such a busy schedule as it is that I don't think I could fit in anymore writing time for it. I also still have my other story and that is taking up my main writing time. Thank you though, I really did consider it and I appreciate that you want more updates, but I just don't think at the time I'll be able to.**

**Anyway, here IS an update for you guys because I have time and am on break! So here it is! **

"Mommy! I wanna go see Santa!" Gracie yelled at the breakfast table.

"I know, we're going Grace, but if you aren't good and eat your breakfast we won't go see him and he'll know you were a bad girl and you won't get any presents. Do you want that?" Meredith asked as she packed a little lunch for Grace at daycare.

"No, I want gifts! I was a good girl mommy!" Gracie said with a pout and fear shining in her eyes.

"Then be good and finish your pancakes." Meredith told her daughter as she rushed around the kitchen.

Derek appeared in the kitchen while finishing buttoning his shirt. They were running late.

"Daddy, are you going to see Santa with me?" Grace asked.

"Yes I am, sweetie." Derek told his daughter as he walked up behind Meredith as she rushed around the kitchen still. She paused for a moment which was just long enough for Derek to wrap his arms around her and make her stop and relax against his body. "Calm down, we'll get there on time." Derek whispered softly into her ear. He instantly felt her muscles relax and she turned her head to look up at him.

"Thank you," She said softly with a smile. He always knew how to make her relax and feel better.

"You're welcome," he told her turning her around and placing a kiss on her lips.

"Let's go." Meredith said, breaking the kiss and moving to pick up Grace's plate and putting it in the sink.

"Ok, let's go." Derek agreed while helping Grace in her winter clothing.

They were heading into the hospital and making a stop to visit Santa before their day began. It was the last day Meredith and Derek had to work for the long weekend. They got Christmas Eve, Christmas day and the day after off, but they were also on call incase any surgery's or patients came in and no one else working could tend to them.

They were seated and ready to go in the car when Derek backed out of the driveway and made their way to the hospital.

"Grace, what are you going to ask for from Santa?" Meredith asked.

"Uhm…I can't tell you." She told her parents.

"Why not?" Derek asked.

"Well, what if I don't get them from him because I told you? It's like a secret." She told them.

"Ah, well how bout you just tell us two of them?" Meredith asked. "We promise Santa will get you them if he thinks he can.

"Uhm…ok. I want a Princess Tiana doll because she's the new princess and she's friends with Cinderella and I have a Cinderella Barbie so I need Princess Tiana. I also want a pony for my dolls because they don't have one and I think they would like one." She rambled her list to her parents and Derek shared a look with Meredith.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked him.

"Because our daughter just rambled like her mother." Derek told her as they came to a red light.

"She did not." Meredith said.

"She totally did, please don't ramble like your mommy little one." Derek spoke to Meredith's baby bump and placed a hand on her stomach to lovingly rub it.

"Hey!" Meredith yelled as she swatted his hand away from her. "You said you loved the rambling." Meredith pouted.

"I do…" He told her.

"Then shut up!" Meredith scolded.

"I love you Mer," Derek said as a peace offering and leaned over to kiss her. Meredith gave in and kissed him back. She couldn't get enough of him even if she tried.

"Green!" Their daughter yelled from the back and Derek looked at the light and noticed that it had turned green. "Great, she's already a back seat driver." He muttered.

* * *

"Mer," Derek whispered into the dark space that filled them as they were wrapped together in the pile of blankets on their bed. When she didn't stir he began to place little kisses on her bare shoulder and nuzzled closer to her ear before whispering her name again.

"Hmmm, what?" she asked not opening her eyes.

"We have to go be Santa." Derek told her. It was Christmas Eve and the day had been perfect. They went sledding with Grace, made a snowman, and baked cookies. It was all family time, all day and they loved it. Gracie went to bed eager and excited for the morning time, and Meredith and Derek enjoyed some Christmas love making before they fell asleep. Now, Derek was trying to wake up his very tired, pregnant wife so they could go play Santa for their daughter.

"Derek, you kept me up with all the Christmas sex, now you want me to get up at two in the morning to place gifts under the tree?" she asked annoyed.

"Yes, but remember it's for our daughter." He told her.

"Yeah, well I should have done the Santa thing earlier instead of giving you sex." Meredith told him.

"You couldn't resist me." He told her placing a kiss under her ear.

"Mhhmm," She muttered before pulling away from him.

"Where'd you go?" he asked as he felt the heat leave his arms and saw her no longer laying next to him.

"To go play Santa, come on." She said pulling on his shirt and a pair of sweat pants before opening their closet door and pulling out a large bag of gifts wrapped all in Princess wrapping paper.

"Lets go Santa." Meredith told him before handing him the bag.

"Yes Mrs. Claus." Derek said with a wink and carried the bag down the stairs after her.

Meredith began placing the gifts under the tree as Derek began munching on some cookies and carrots that Gracie had placed out for Santa and the reindeer. They left a note they had typed out previously thanking Gracie for the cookies, milk and carrots and signed it from Santa. They finished placing the gifts under the tree and eating the cookies before climbing back up the stairs and making sure she was still asleep. When they saw she hadn't moved since earlier, they moved back into their room and under the covers before drifting back to sleep.

* * *

"Santa came! Santa came!" Gracie cheered with excitement as she threw open her parents door and charged onto their bed with full force.

"Ooof!" Derek let out as he felt his daughter pound on him. He was just thankful she hadn't landed on Meredith and the baby with that force.

"Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" She cheered excitedly to her parents since they didn't move.

"Why do we have to wake up? Nothing special happens today." Derek teased as he lay in bed. "Mommy can you think of anything special today?" Derek asked.

"Nope, not at all. Just another day." Meredith said playing along.

"It's CHRISTMAS!!!!" Cheered their four year old.

"Oh, that's right. But I don't know if Santa came." Derek teased.

"Yes he did Daddy! I was a good girl!" she cheered.

"Well, how bout we go down stairs and see just how good you were?" Derek asked before tickling her.

Grace let out her melodic giggle and Derek beamed at the sound as it then also came out of Meredith's mouth.

He loved his family more than anything in the world, and he hoped if they had another little girl that she would have that same giggle. He would never tire of that sound.

"PRESENTS!!!!" shouted the little girl.

"Gracie, please. Mommy's ears hurt." Meredith said as she placed her daughter on her lap. "I want to ask you some questions first." Meredith said.

"What mommy?" Gracie asked.

"Why do we celebrate Christmas?" she asked.

"Because we get presents!" the little girl answered.

"But why do we get presents?"

"Because of all the little girls and boys who were good and Santa wants to give them gifts because they were so good." Gracie answered.

"Right, but why else?" Meredith asked.

"Uhmm…" Gracie didn't know the answer.

"Whose birthday is it?" Meredith asked.

"Daddy's!" Gracie answered which caused a few laughs from her parents.

"No, silly girl. Baby Jesus." Meredith reminded.

"Oh yeah, we celebwate Christmas for baby Jesus!" the little girl answered excited that she finally got it right. "Can I open mine now?"

"Yes you can," Meredith answered with a smile. Derek and Meredith followed behind laughing at their daughter and the silly thoughts that went through her brain.

Grace made her way to the tree and gasped at the pile of presents all for her. She began opening them and excitedly reacted to each gift revealed and showed it off to her parents. Her parents acted as if they had never seen the gift before in their life and cheered happily for their daughter as they cuddled on the couch with hot tea.

They waited for Gracie to get distracted before exchanging their own gifts. Meredith placed his near him and Derek did the same. He gestured for her to go first and she tore the paper away from the long, skinny box.

She revealed a velvet jewelry box and opened it to see a bracelet laying on a soft pillow-like cushion glistening in the light. It was beautiful.

"Derek, it's beautiful, I love it." She told him happily.

"I got you five charms. The first one is a G for Gracie and her birthday is written on the back and her birthstone is placed in diamonds through out the G, the second one is a D for Derek and I put my own quote on the back, then there is an M for you and your birthstone, then a 'Best Mom' charm, because you are the best mom to our children, and then the last one is a charm for our new addition and that is the heart charm." Derek told her as he pointed them out to her.

She turned the charm for Derek over and read his quote, 'To the love of my life', engraved on the back.

"I love it," Meredith told him honestly as tears sprang to her eyes and she blinked them away. Derek brushed them off her cheek and kissed her gently on the lips.

"I love you," he told her.

"I love you too," she told him returning the kiss.

"Open yours." She told him after he fastened the bracelet on her arm.

Derek turned to his gift and unwrapped a new tackle box and gear wrapped with it. He smiled at Meredith and she told him to open the lid, inside he found a scrub cap that had #1 husband written all over it. He chuckle at the scrub cap and thanked her for the gift.

"It's your two favorite things put together." She told him.

"It is, but you and Gracie are my two favorite things and this one is about to be added to the list." He told her as he kissed her.

"Look at the inside cover of the box." She told him. He looked inside at the lid and noticed something engraved on there. 'To the love of my life' and the date they got married was written on there with a plaque.

"I love it." Derek told her with a bright smile.

"I'm glad, thank you again for my gift." She told him with kiss.

"Thank you!" he answered.

Gracie came to them then with her gifts for them and they each took and unwrapped the gifts.

Meredith went first and gasped at the earrings revealed. "Gracie did you pick them out?" she asked.

"All by myself," She said proudly.

"They're beautiful sweetheart, I love them." Meredith told her daughter with a smile.

"They're like Cinderella's." Gracie added.

"Of course," Meredith said with a playful eye roll.

"Daddy's turn!" Gracie said.

Derek unwrapped a box that contained a picture frame that he assumed Gracie picked out. It read #1 Dad and had a picture of him and Grace from the summer. He loved it. "Thank you Gracie, it's perfect!" he said as he placed a kiss on top of her head.

"There's more." Gracie told him.

Derek looked in the box again and he saw another scrub cap that read the same as the picture frame, he loved it. He could alternate between this scrub cap and the one Meredith got him forever. It was perfect.

"Thank you baby girl." He told her as he picked her up and placed her between him and Meredith as they each thanked her for their gifts.

"Can I play with my toys now?" Gracie asked.

"Sure, did you get everything you wanted?" Meredith asked.

"All but one…" Grace said.

"What was that?" Derek asked.

"A baby sister…" she answered.

"Well sweetie, I'm still taking care of the baby inside me, and we don't know if it's a girl or a boy yet." Meredith answered.

"I know, I just asked Santa for a sister." Grace said before kissing her mom's stomach and then running off to play.

"She's definitely your daughter." Derek said with a laugh.

"How?" she asked.

"She's bossy and controlling." He told her.

"You're right, she's definitely my daughter…the question is, is she yours?" Meredith teased.

Derek gave her a dirty look before answering back, "She's definitely mine, I remember taking part in making her." He said with wink.

"Oh darn, that's right. But you never know, this one could turn out to be someone else's." Meredith continued to tease.

"Nope, I took part in that one too." Derek said with a wink.

Meredith giggled at him and felt him pull her near before placing kissing all over her face in a loving gesture.

"I love you Mer, thank you for another perfect Christmas. I wouldn't want to spend it with anyone else." He told her honestly.

"I love you too, and you're welcome. I wouldn't want to spend this day without you either. Thank you for my beautiful gifts." Meredith answered.

They spent the rest of the morning watching their daughter play with her new toys as they sat and cuddled together enjoying their lives together.

**Hope you enjoyed!!!**

**Have a Merry Christmas everyone!!! I'll try to get a New Year's one up around then!!**

**Thank you for reading and REVIEW please!**


	7. New Years

_**So I know New Years Eve was FOREVER ago, not really only a couple weeks, but I didn't write this. Life got in the way and well I've also been lazy and putting it off. Anyway, I suck as a writer for waiting and taking this long to get this out to you guys, but well I don't know what to say. Other than I am sorry and here is the next chapter!!**_

_

* * *

_

"What are we doing tomorrow?" Meredith asked Derek as she came up to him at the Nurse's station.

They returned to work a couple days after Christmas and were finishing up their last shift of the year. Gracie was in the daycare anxious for the New Year. Even though she didn't know much about the holiday, she remembered that she got to stay up late and watch the pretty ball drop from the sky.

"What do you want to do?" Derek asked her turning to look at her after signing and shutting the chart he was currently finishing up.

"I don't know. That's why I asked you, Derek." She said with a sigh in exasperation.

"Mer, what's wrong?" He asked detecting his wife's annoyance.

"Nothing, just figure out what we're doing and let me know." She said turning away.

Derek let out a sigh, unsure of what was wrong with his wife. She had been fine that morning, there had been no arguments and yet she acted as if he did something wrong. He made a mental check of all the things she had asked him to do this morning; get Gracie up, get her ready, make breakfast, and make Grace a lunch. Check, check, check, and check. He had done everything she had asked. So what was with the attitude?

He let out another sigh and walked to his office. Something was up, he just didn't know what. He heard a knock at the door and hoped it would be Meredith, but then she wouldn't have knocked so he knew it wasn't her. "Come in," he called.

"Hey Shep! What's going on?" Mark asked while walking into the office.

"Nothing really, Meredith's acting weird but other than that…" Derek trailed off still lost in thought over his wife.

"Hey, don't sweat it man, I'm sure it's just the hormones." Mark told him.

"Yeah…maybe…" Derek said.

"So what are you guys doing tomorrow?" Mark asked.

"I don't know. Meredith asked me that earlier and I didn't know, so that caused her to get ticked off." Derek said.

"Why don't we all go out to eat?" Mark asked Derek.

"You, Lex, Keith and us?" Derek asked to verify.

"Yeah, why not? We'll go out to eat somewhere, hang out a little afterward, and then Lexie wants to do a movie night or something with just me and the little man." Mark said with an eye roll, but he couldn't help but let the smile come out.

"Alright, that actually sounds good." Derek said satisfied that he could find his wife and fill her in and maybe her mood would improve.

"Alright, I gotta go I just wanted to check in, but I'll text you later with the details." Mark informed Derek before giving a wave and leaving.

Derek quickly text Meredith,

_Hey, where are you?_

He waited the patient minutes till he heard his phone beep with the notification that a message had been received.

_On call room sleeping. Why?_

He left his office and quickly made his way to the one call room he knew Meredith enjoyed to sleep in. He opened the door softly and saw his wife lying on the bed curled up snoozing lightly.

"Mer, you up?" he asked gently while sitting next to her.

"Yeah, what's up?" she asked pulling herself from her light sleep.

"I figured out what we can do tomorrow night." He told her. "We can go out to eat with Mark, Lexie and Keith then after that hang out with them for a little bit and then head back to our house and enjoy the night in. We can watch movies, play games, and Gracie can stay up as long as she can, then after she falls asleep we can bring in the New Year like we always do." Derek said with a smirk.

"With New Year sex?" Meredith asked him with a smile he had missed.

"Of course." Derek answered.

"It's always about sex with you isn't it?" she asked.

"Of course." He responded again with a smile.

Meredith let out her giggle that made Derek's heart soar.

"I might cut you off." She said.

"Never." He answered.

"You better watch it then buddy." She told him with a teasing smile.

"You know I love you, don't you?" he asked.

"I do, and I love you too. I'm sorry about earlier, I was just tired and moody." She told him.

"It's alright Mer, I understand." He told her.

"It's not alright, I was mean for no reason and I'm sorry." She told him.

"Well, I appreciate it and I forgive you." He told her with a charming smile.

"I'm excited for tomorrow now," Meredith told him as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Me too," he said softly.

"Where are we going?" she asked him.

"I don't know yet, Mark is going to text me the details later when he talks to Lexie more about it." he told her.

"Ok, that sounds good." She said with a yawn.

"Do you have any more surgeries or anything left?" Derek asked.

"Nope, just waiting for you to get off." She told him.

"Well then, lets go get our little girl and head home." Derek said with a smile.

"You're done?" she asked.

"I'm done. I'm ready to spend the next couple days off with my beautiful wife and our wonderful daughter." Derek said with a smile, he was always happy in Meredith's presence. He grabbed her hand and they made it to his office to change before heading to the day care and getting their daughter.

* * *

"Mommy what are we gettin all pwetty for?" Gracie asked her mother as she sat up on the bathroom counter watching her mother apply light blush to her cheeks.

"We're meeting Uncle Mar, Aunt Lexie and Keith at a restaurant to eat dinner." Meredith told Grace as she applied mascara to her eye lashes.

"Where we eatin?" Grace asked curious.

"We're going to Sal's pizza place. Do you remember that place?" Meredith asked her daughter.

"Yeah! They had the pretty crayons!" Gracie cheered.

"That's right." Meredith laughed, to be young again and only care about crayons.

"Mommy, can I have some?" Grace asked looking at her mother apply lip gloss.

"Sure," Meredith answered before leaning down and apply a thin layer of shiny lip gloss to her daughter's lips.

"Can I have some pink stuff for my cheeks?" she asked pushing her cheeks together like a fish.

Meredith giggled at her daughter before bending down to place a light color of blush onto her cheeks. "There, you look beautiful!" Meredith complimented.

"Thank you mommy!" She said with glee. "You look stunning!" Gracie said surprising Meredith with a new word.

"Stunning huh? Where'd you hear that word?" Meredith asked curious.

"From daddy, he say it all the time." Gracie said.

"Really? To who?" Meredith asked.

"To you mommy!" Gracie said.

"Me?"

"She's right, you know." Derek said surprising them both, but only causing Meredith to jump a little.

"Daddy!" Gracie said with a smile as she saw her father enter the bathroom that was attached to the master room. "You look handsome!"

"Why thank you my little butter cup, you look absolutely beautiful!" he told his daughter and saw her elated look sparkle in her eyes.

"Thank you daddy," she said with a giggle. He tickled her and picked her up off the counter, swinging her in his arms before placing her on the floor.

"You need to go clean up your toys before we can go," Derek told his daughter looking down at her. Her little, blond curls were lying softly on her shoulders as the blond bounced off of them. She looked up at him with her big, green eyes that reflected her mother's and her smile almost made him lose his authority and tell her to forget about her room. Surprisingly, he pulled through and watched as she turned and left the room with a smile still on her face.

"She's too cute for her own good," Derek said to his wife.

"Just wait till she gets older." Meredith said as she finished getting ready and checked her appearance in the mirror.

"I'm locking her up, I can only imagine what it'll be like, especially if she continues to look like you." He told her wrapping his arms around her and placing a soft kiss on her neck, right below her ear, causing her to shiver. "Stop checking your appearance, you look stunning as always." He told their reflection in the mirror. They looked absolutely perfect next to one-another, like a picture perfect couple.

"Thank you, honey." Meredith said turning to face him with a smile. "You look handsome," she told him.

"Thank you, I picked this sweater because of you." He told her. It was a navy sweater over a light blue button down, nothing special but Meredith loved it on him.

"I do love that on you; it brings out your eyes and makes your hair look darker and brighter." Meredith said with a smile.

"I'm glad you approve." He said with a charming smile.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm ready for this night to be over so I can get you out of that dress." He told her with a smirk. She was dressed in a simple black dress that shaped her little baby bump. She looked gorgeous with her blond curls flowing freely around her face.

"Derek," she said with a teasing tone. "It's just dinner." She told him.

"I know." He said with a smile.

"You can go a couple hours without sex," she told him.

"You haven't given me any lately." He told her.

"You just got some the night before last." She reminded him.

"Mer, there will never be enough." He told her, getting a giggle out of her.

"Come on my deprived husband, lets go to this dinner you set up." She told him.

* * *

They enjoyed their dinner with the Sloan's with Gracie and Keith chattering away about their little lives while the grown ups spoke about anything other than work. That topic was off limits.

The dinner ran by smoothly and before they knew it, their food was gone and the kids were ready to leave. They went back to Mark's and Lexie's since it was closest and the kids played a little while the parents continued to talk and discuss random things. As it neared eight Meredith and Derek got Gracie ready and they set off for their journey home.

Once Gracie ran into the house she decided to change into her pajamas so she could stay up all night. "What are you going to do?" Derek asked.

"I think I'm going to follow my daughters lead and change into my pajamas too." Meredith said with a smile.

"That sounds good, I'll join you." He said with a smile.

"God, you'll do anything just to get a peak." She said.

"You bet, plus I want to be the one to take that dress off you." He told her, "I've been thinking about it all night."

Meredith rolled her eyes before she started climbing the stairs. She poked her head in Gracie's room, "Hey sweetie, play in your room for a little bit while we change and get ready for the night. We'll call you out when everything is ready, ok?" she asked.

"Ok mommy," Gracie said as she played with her Barbie's.

Meredith made her way to their room and let Derek follow in behind her. She went to her dresser and pulled out a pair of sweat pants she loved and then pulled a sweat shirt of Derek's out. She went to reach for her zipper when she felt Derek's hands stop her, "Let me," he told her in a whisper.

"Derek, we really don't have time to do anything. I promise tonight if I'm not dead tired we will." She told him as she felt the zipper lower and her back become exposed.

"Don't worry about it Mer, I know we don't have time. It wouldn't be appropriate right now anyway, not with our daughter waiting for us. As long as you're not exhausted tonight I plan on making love to you. But if you are I get it," he told her running his hands up and down her naked spine.

"That feels good," Meredith hummed as goose bumps sprang to the surface of her skin.

She felt and heard the dress hit the floor and turned around to face Derek in just her bra and underwear. "You're absolutely beautiful," he told her with a smile.

"Thank you, I love you…so much." She told him with a smile of her own.

"I love you too, more than anything in the world." He told her leaning in for a kiss. Meredith raised her arms to circle his neck and he brought them closer together as they shared an intimate, passionate kiss. It ended before either wanted, but knew they couldn't push it further.

"Lets get dressed." She said softly turning to the bed and pulling on the clothes she set out. "I'm going to go get Grace and we'll start getting some snacks and movies ready." Meredith told him before placing a peck on his lips and turning to leave the room.

Derek let out a sigh and pulled on his own sweat pants and sweat shirt. He picked one she had in her drawer so then it would smell like her, and he loved to have her smell surrounding him. It was intoxicating.

He walked down stairs to see his wife and daughter curled up on the couch with blankets and pillows surrounding them in a warm cocoon. Next to his wife was an empty spot he knew his body would soon fill, but he just wanted to take in the site of his life, his future cuddled together in a warm embrace. It was truly beautiful to see them so relaxed and comfortable in their own beauty watching the movie previews in their pajamas. It was breathtaking.

He shook himself of the daze he was in and made his way to the couch and placed himself under the covers and next to his wife and embraced the only two women who could capture his heart.

They watched all the movie's Gracie wanted and she insisted on staying up for all of them. She also wanted to watch the ball drop. When the time came for them to switch the station they noticed her eyes drooping low with tiredness. Derek picked her up carefully and carried her up to her room to place her in bed. He whispered a 'goodnight' and 'happy new year' to her before closing the door and descending down the stairs.

"She still out?" Meredith asked.

"Yep, sleeping like a rock." He told her as he sat back down next to her and wrapped them up in the blankets again.

"She'll be upset in the morning when she realizes she didn't make it again." Meredith said with a giggle.

"She'll be fine." He said as he watched the TV as they began counting down the last ten seconds of the year.

When they ended with one Derek wrapped her up tight in his arms and kissed her softly on her lips, then turned it passionate.

"Happy New Year Mer, I love you." He told her as he pulled away to look at her eyes.

"I love you too, Happy New Year." She said with a beaming smile.

"This is going to be another great year, I can feel it." He said with a smile as he placed his hands on her stomach where their baby was growing.

"I can too," Meredith said with a smile.

She kissed him softly then rested her body into his and left him panting after a breathtaking kiss. "Lets go up stairs and start this new year the right way," she said with a wink as she stood and he quickly followed.

This New Year was going to be great, he just knew it.

* * *

**There you go! Another chapter! I don't know how many more there will be. There aren't many big holiday's coming up and I don't know if I want to continue it. But, if I do you'll know. Thank you for reading and please review!!! **

**Thank you! I hope everyone has a great 2010!!! **

**Melissa!**


	8. Valentine's Day

**Hello you guys!! You wanted a Valentine's Day chapter, so here it is! I hope you guys enjoy it! I wasn't planning on writing one unless I got the down time, so since I had a snow day today, I decided I would write one for you guys! I hope you enjoy! (:**

Meredith was five months pregnant, and the thought of Valentine's Day just didn't sound appealing to her anymore. If anything she thought of it as just another normal day. Before Derek had entered her life and made her experience and fall in love, she didn't give a damn about any holiday or love for that matter. But once they started dating and she started to fall for him, he made her love the holiday and anything to do with love as long as he was there for her.

She had never been the type of girl to care about flowers, or chocolate candies and when she was growing up in high school any boy who wanted to spend time with her on Valentine's she'd simply roll her eyes and push him away. It was a tacky, made up holiday in her eyes then. Last year, and all the previous years involving Derek Shepherd, she had loved the holiday and he made it so special for her every year. This year, she knew would be no different, but she also knew she couldn't and wouldn't feel sexy while being pregnant for the holiday.

She awoke to the alarm going off like every morning and made no move to actually get up or move an inch. Derek, like he did every morning as well, reached across her and turned the alarm off. On his way back to his original position he placed some soft kisses along his wife's body laying them lightly on her cheek, neck, shoulder and lastly her lips.

"Morning." He mumbled softly to her.

"Morning." She responded and gave him another kiss.

"Happy Valentine's Day," Derek told her with a smile as he nuzzled his scruffy face against her neck and cheek.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Meredith grumbled.

"What's wrong? I thought you loved this day?" he asked her looking at her confused.

"Normally, and only since you came along." She told him.

"And what's wrong with it this year?" he asked her.

"We have a daughter," she told him.

"And we've had that daughter the past four Valentine's Day's." He pointed out to her.

"Yeah, well now I'm pregnant." She told him.

"You were pregnant the Valentine's day before Grace." He told her.

"But now I'm fat." She told him.

"Meredith, you're not fat. You're my cute, pregnant wife. I love the baby bump, you know that." He told her.

"But I'm not sexy." She told him, "You have to be sexy on Valentine's Day."

"You are sexy, you're sexy to me and that's all that matters. We are celebrating this day Meredith Elizabeth Shepherd; don't even try to get out of it." He told her with a smile as he placed a series of kisses onto her lips.

"I refuse to celebrate this year." She told him. "It's a pointless holiday that Hallmark made up."

"Meredith, you're being stubborn. We are celebrating; I've already made plans that you are going to have to go along with. I won't let you bring this holiday down. It is a day to celebrate our love, and we are going to enjoy it." He told her.

"Derek, we haven't had sex in two weeks, that's not going to change tonight. I know the reason behind it is because I'm not sexy anymore, so just forget about the damn holiday and lets just spend it with Grace and your mom since she's in town." Meredith told him as she pushed off the bed and went into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Damn, Derek loved when she was pregnant. It made him so happy to know that his beautiful wife was nesting his next child inside her and she was so damn cute and sexy with the baby bump, he loved it. But what he didn't love was those damn hormones that came along with it. The ups and downs of her emotions were paying a toll on him, and normally he brushed them off, but that last comment made about them not having sex was completely wrong and he knew they needed to talk. He tried to get in the bathroom, but found the door locked. She never locked the door behind her, mainly because they often showered together.

He raked a hand through his hair and made his way to his daughter's room to wake her up.

He entered her room to find her little body sprawled out. Her arms were spread out across the bed and her legs were curled up, and her beautiful hair lay sprawled across her pillow. He noticed once again just how much she looked like her beautiful mom and went to the side of her bed. Placing soft kisses along her cheeks he softly whispered in her ear to wake up. "Time to get up Princess,"

"Daddy, I wanna sweep." She told him in a tired voice.

"I know baby, but it's time to get up. You're spending the day with Grandma. Do you remember what day it is?" he asked her gently.

"Vaventine's day." She said softly.

"Yup, so that means you and Grandma are going to spend it together while she's in town. How does that sound?" he asked her.

"Ok, I'll get up." She said softly as she flung her blanket and stuffed animal aside.

"Ok, lets get you dressed and ready to go because we're leaving in an hour." He told her, knowing she had no concept of time yet.

"Do I get to wear my pink heart shirt?" she asked.

Meredith had taken Gracie shopping one night and a cute shirt for Valentine's Day that Gracie also loved. Ever since then, Grace had been looking forward to wearing it.

"You sure do." Derek told her happily.

"Yay!" the little girl cheered.

Meredith then appeared in the room and the brightness and happy smile that appeared on his daughter's face made it evident that she adored her mother.

"Mommy!" she said happily as she dropped her shirt and ran to give her mom a morning greeting.

Meredith picked her up gently and positioned her around the baby bump as she placed kisses on her cheeks. "Good morning baby girl! And Happy Valentine's Day!" Meredith said cheerfully.

Derek thought how ironic it was that she could muster up that enthusiasm for their daughter on this day, but when he told her the same thing he got brushed aside.

"Happy Vaventine's Day too, mommy!" the little girl said in her girly, squeaky voice.

"You can go shower and get ready for breakfast with your mom, I'll finish getting her ready." She told Derek.

"We need to talk about earlier," he told her.

"Not now we don't. It can wait, it's not like we're doing anything today. We have the day off and we're spending time with your mom." She told him.

"Meredith, why can't you just talk to me about this stuff instead of pushing it aside?" he asked her, stress evident in his tone and face.

"Not now, Derek." She told him in a sharp tone. She left Grace's room and led their daughter into her bathroom near her room and shut the door so Derek would understand she wanted to be alone while getting their daughter ready.

She got Grace's toothbrush ready with tooth paste and asked her to open up so she could brush her teeth, when Grace decided to be stubborn.

"No mommy, I do it." She told her mother.

"Not this morning, Grace, ok? Mommy needs to do it so then we can get going. We're already running late for breakfast with Grandma so I need to do it." Meredith told her daughter. Meredith was still in only her bathrobe from her shower and still needed to finish getting dressed and ready. She was hoping getting their daughter ready would be quick, but since today wasn't in her favor already, she was having difficulty.

"No mommy! I wanna do it!" The little girl yelled.

Meredith so was not in the mood to deal with this right now, "Grace Elizabeth Shepherd, we don't have time for this right now. You need to let me brush your teeth and do your hair or you will go sit in your room!" Meredith scolded in a firm told, she promised to not raise her voice more than needed to her daughter this morning. It was supposed to be a fun, good day.

"No mommy, I do it." Grace said once again to test her mother.

"That's it." Meredith said angry as she picked Grace up and carried her to her room and set her back onto her bed. "Grace, you are going to sit here until either daddy or I come and get you. You weren't listening to me, so now you have to sit here." Meredith told her, knowing that moment wouldn't make her mother of the year or day even, before she left Grace's room closing the door behind her.

She stood at the door for a few seconds and felt tears spring up in her eyes as she heard the soft cries from her daughter. She hated yelling or punishing Grace, but when she continuously tested Meredith, especially during the times when her hormones were on the fritz, she tended to have low patience and punish her a little more. She knew it was horrible, but she couldn't allow Grace to act the way she was that morning either.

She walked down the hallway to her room and saw Derek standing at the closet with just a towel wrapped around his waist as she decided on what to wear. Her tears had began to fall slowly down her cheeks as more collected up around the brim of her eyes as she walked further into the room.

"You should go take care of Grace," She told him sniffling up a little as she brushed the tears away.

"What's wrong?" he asked her alarmed, he hadn't expected her to come back in the room yet, but he certainly didn't expect tears to be in her eyes as well.

"Nothing, she was just being stubborn and so she's sitting in her room waiting for you to help her get ready." Meredith told him as she went to her dresser to pull out a pair of jeans that would fit her.

"She's being stubborn? Like her mother?" Derek tried joking with her. She shot him a dirty look.

"Get dressed and go to her Derek, I'm getting dressed soon and I wouldn't want your eyes to go blind by the sight of my body." She snapped at him.

"Meredith, would you please just talk to me? Why are you all of a sudden worried about how you look? Why do you think I'm not turned on or in love with your body anymore?" He asked her.

"Go away Derek, she's already crying and I've won the worst mother award, so go be daddy of the year and rescue her." Meredith told him in a cold tone.

Derek let out a deep sigh. This was so not how he wanted to spend this holiday with his wife. He planned on taking her to dinner, showering her in chocolate and all her favorite cravings right now, he bought her another charm to add to her bracelet and he planned on spending the night with his beautiful wife while Gracie was at his mom's rental house.

Ever since Gracie had been born his mom had rented a place out near them so she could come and visit when she wanted. She came periodically and always tried to come during special events and it just so happened that she came around Valentine's Day.

"Fine Meredith, but we're going to talk about all of this after I take care of her." He told her as he pulled on a pair of jeans and a blue button up shirt to go on under his navy sweater. She always said that blue brought out the color of his eyes, so he was hoping she would like it even more today and maybe stop ignoring him.

Meredith let more tears come as she changed and made them stop as much as she could when she applied her make up.

Derek went in to talk to Grace and get her ready so they could finally get out of the house. "Gracie, want to tell daddy why mommy is so upset?" he asked her gently as he got down to her eye level.

"I want…ted…I wanted to…to…brush my…teefff, and she got…maaaddd because I would…wouldn….wouldn't listen….to her…" she wailed as she cried. Her green eyes were red and they had tears welled up in them; they looked just like Meredith's did when she walked into their room.

"So you weren't listening to mommy?" Derek asked, trying to understand her through the sobs.

She nodded her head and Derek tried not to laugh at the pouty look on her face.

"Do you know that you were bad?" Derek asked.

She nodded again.

"Do you need to tell mommy you're sorry?" he asked.

She nodded again.

Ok, lets go clean your face, brush your teeth and do your hair. Then you need to tell mommy you're sorry. Wipe the tears." He told her. She brought her little hands to her face and brushed the tears off her cheeks and hoped off her bed.

They proceeded to the bathroom and Gracie got ready for breakfast with her daddy's help.

Meredith finished getting ready as well and went down stairs to join her husband and daughter.

"Mommy!" Gracie exclaimed as her mother entered the room.

Meredith knelt down to her daughter's eye level and waited to hear what Grace had to say.

"I sorry mommy, I was a bad girl and didn't listen." Grace told her mother with a sad look.

"It's ok baby, mommy's sorry she got so mad but you have to listen to me ok?" Meredith told her softly as she enveloped her daughter in a hug and looked at Derek. He smiled at the sight of his wife and daughter embraced in a loving way.

"Ok mommy, we're going to bweakfast with Grandma! I also get to stay the night with her! Right?" she asked.

Meredith looked to Derek confused. She had no idea about Grace staying the night at his mom's.

"Right baby girl," Derek said nodding his head. "Why don't you go play for a little bit, I'm going to talk to mommy real quick and then we'll go."

Gracie nodded her head and ran off to her play room.

"What's going on Derek?" Meredith asked, crossing her arms.

"Well Meredith, normally you enjoy this holiday a little bit, so like every year I planned something for us. And since my mom is here this year, she offered to watch Grace and asked to have a sleep over with her. So Grace is going over there, and we're celebrating, or I had plans for us to." He told her.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, as she felt more tears well up.

"Because it was supposed to be a surprise." He told her, confused why she was crying. Was she mad at him? "Why are you crying?" he asked softly as he made his way to her.

"Because, I'm such a bitch. I was a bad mom this morning to Grace, and a horrible wife to you. God, how can I have another baby? I just keep screwing up!" She exclaimed to him.

"Meredith, hey, it's ok. Listen to me, you were a good mom this morning, Grace wasn't listening and we've talked to her about that. She needed to be punished, and you did that. And you aren't a horrible wife. You're perfect. I love having you as my wife. You're hormones were getting to you this morning I'm guessing because I would _never_ think you were un-sexy just because you're pregnant. In fact, I think it's sexy that you're carrying my child. You're so beautiful, and the reason why we haven't had sex the past two weeks is because work has been draining us, not because I don't want or need you anymore. I love you, I always will. You're sexy, and I'll always think that." He told her pulling her close to him, thankful she didn't push him away.

"Really?" She asked as her head was buried in his chest.

"Really, I love you. And we are going to celebrate this holiday. You're beautiful and very sexy to me and I can't wait to have you alone tonight." He told her softly.

"Ok, I love you too. I'm sorry my hormones went crazy on me. I was mean." She told him, looking up at him.

"You're fine, I get it." He told her.

"So what did you have planned for today?" she asked, knowing he wouldn't tell her.

"I'm not telling you that, you'll have to wait." He told her with a chuckle.

"Ugh, fine. Thank you for wanting to make this day special," she told him softly as she kissed him.

"Of course, we've celebrated every year, that wasn't going to change now." He told her as he returned her kiss and made it deeper.

"I really do love you," she told him as they pulled apart.

"I really do love you, too." He told her with a chuckle.

"Let's go get our daughter and go meet your mom, she's probably wondering where we are." She told him.

"Ok," he said as they went to get Grace and make their way to see his mom.

After they had lunch with Derek's mom and sent their daughter home with her, they returned home to their big, empty house. It was so much quieter when their little pride and joy was away from home.

"Now what, Mr. Romance?" Meredith asked with a teasing smile.

"Now, you have to go upstairs and get the box that is sitting on the bed." He told her.

"What box? I was the last one up there and didn't see one." She told him.

"Well my dear, there is a box sitting up there with your name on it." He told her.

"But what if I didn't get you anything?" she asked.

"Then that's ok, because I already have everything I need." He told her.

"Well so do I, so that means you can take your gift back." She told him.

"Would you stop being stubborn and just go upstairs and open your gift." He told her.

"Ok, if you insist." She told him as she made her way to the stairs and went up stairs. She opened the door to their room and saw rose petals around the room, she let out a low laugh because of the cheesiness and finally settled her eyes on the black gift sitting on their bed, which was also covered in rose petals.

She opened it to reveal a charm that had two hearts together with a simple 'I love you," engraved on the back. It was simple and yet so beautiful, she loved it.

She found a small note along with it and picked it up.

_My beautiful wife,_

_Since we've been together I have so much love towards you, today is another day for me to pamper you. Go into the bathroom and enjoy a nice, relaxing bath. You deserve it and so much more._

_I love you,_

_Derek._

Meredith smiled at the letter and placed it on the bed before going to the bathroom and seeing a bubble bath set up with candles lit around it. She once again wondered how he did it, but let the thought pass as she stripped off her clothes and lowered herself into the bathtub. She felt the tension from life lift off of her and she leaned back to enjoy the wonderful feeling.

"How is it?" Derek asked softly, not wanting to disturb his wife's peace.

"Perfect, and you're perfect. I love the charm, and your letter." She told him with a smile. "Join me?" she asked.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Absolutely. I want to spend this time with you." She told him.

Derek didn't need anymore to persuade him. He pulled off his clothing and entered the tub and rested behind her as she leaned back against his chest.

"This is perfect, Derek, thank you." She told him.

"You're welcome." He told her. "I love you,"

"I love you too, so much." She told him as she smiled and turned around in the tub and sat on his lap facing him.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing, you're just perfect and I'm so lucky to have you." She told him with a smile.

"I'm lucky too, very lucky." He told her.

"I don't ever want to lose this feeling." She told him as she rested her head on his chest.

"We won't. We're going to be this way until we're a hundred and eight." Derek told her.

"I'm perfectly happy with that." She told him with a smile.

"Are you ready for the rest of the days' plans?" he asked.

"No, I don't want to go out or whatever you're planning. Lets just stay in all day and have sex, and take baths, and eat whatever we want." She told him.

"You sure?" he asked.

"Definitely. We never get the house to ourselves." She told him.

"True, I'm ok with your plans." He said.

"You are?" she asked.

"Yep," he said.

"Good, I'm sorry again about this morning. Hormones are a bitch, and cause me to be one too." She said.

"It's ok, I forgive you and I understand." He said.

"I love you Derek, happy Valentine's day." She said with a smile as she looked up at him.

"I love you too, happy Valentine's day." He told her before kissing her passionately.

They lost themselves in the kiss and shortly after once the water began to get cold, Derek lifted them out of the water and carried his wife to their bed to make love to her for the rest of the day. After all, they had two weeks worth to make up for.

**There you go! It was long! I know they were fighting and Meredith was stubborn a lot through it, but hey not everyday of their lives is going to be perfect! I hope you guys' liked it. I didn't really want to go into the whole Valentine 's Day thing, just have a little fluff with their family. I hope you liked it, and those who are reading my other story as well there will be an update I promise, it's just taking a while. I have to watch an episode to do some research and finish writing it. It's almost done.**

**Thank you for reading, as always, REVIEW!!!**


	9. Silly Rabbit!

**I know I missed one of the big holidays with writing and I apologize. Writing has just not been easy to fit into my schedule lately, but I did get a new pretty lap top so that will make my updates more frequent I'm hoping. This is the very late Easter update! Just think back to the beginning of the month for this. **

The cold, freezing weather had started to turn into warmth and spring showers. The buds on the trees had started to bloom and flowers were starting to show their early stage of life. It was spring time, and the Easter bunny had made a stop at the Shepherd household that morning.

"Mer," Derek whispered into his wife's ear that morning. It was eight in the morning and they had already hid Grace's Easter present for her to find that morning on a pre-Easter hunt.

"What?" she mumbled with sleep still evident in her voice.

"Happy Easter," he told her while nuzzling her neck.

"Derek, I am growing your child in my body, your daughter didn't want to go to sleep easily last night, then we had to hide her basket after she went to bed, and then you wanted sex. So, I'm still exhausted. Let me sleep, just until Grace wakes up. Please?" she asked him with a smile.

"Fine, I'll go down stairs and make breakfast while I wait for my sleepy heads to wake me up." He told her with a laugh and a kiss planted to her lips.

"Thank you, I love you." Meredith told him with a smile.

"I love you too," he told her.

Derek left the room with a smile and made his way to the kitchen. Meredith was seven months pregnant with his child and they still hadn't found out the sex. Meredith wanted to so they could plan and figure everything out, but Derek enjoyed the suspense of not knowing quite yet. He would love it either way. If they had another daughter that looked just like Meredith or if she looked just like Derek he would be thrilled, but if he got a little boy then that would make him happy as well. Even though he always joked about wanting a boy in the house with him, he wouldn't mind either way because his life with his girls meant the world to him. He just wanted the baby and Meredith to be healthy and perfect.

He started making Grace's favorite waffles when he heard her start to come down the stairs.

"Morning daddy!" Gracie said hoping up on the bar stool that sat in front of the island he was making the waffles on.

"Morning Gracie bug! Happy Easter!" Derek told her, walking around the island and placing a soft kiss on her blond curls.

"Where's mommy?" Gracie asked.

"She's still sleeping," he told her.

"Still? She's being a sleepy head!" Gracie said with a pout.

Derek let out a chuckle and returned to preparing the waffles. "Did the Easter bunny come?" she asked him.

"I don't know, we'll have to find out." Derek told her.

"How much longer till we do?" she asked.

"Well, mommy has to come down stairs. Last night daddy was asleep when he told mommy the first clue to where your basket is." Derek told her.

Every year they hid her basket in a fun, crazy place where she could find it within a couple clues. It kept her entertained for a while, and she loved going on searches to find it.

"I don't know if he told me last night, daddy." Meredith said entering the room.

"Mommy!" Gracie said jumping down from the stool and running into her mother's arms. She hated that her mommy couldn't pick her up anymore because of her big tummy, but she was looking forward to the baby coming and her becoming a big sister.

"Morning baby, happy Easter!" Meredith told her.

"You too, mommy!" she said with a smile.

"What's for breakfast?" Meredith asked going around the island and getting decaf coffee.

"Waffles of course," Derek said with a smile as he grabbed juice from the fridge and grabbed the cream for Meredith as well. He set the cream by his wife and placed a kiss on the golden curls that matched his daughter's.

"Oh, of course." Meredith said with a giggle.

"Mommy, can I go find my basket now?" Grace asked as she sipped on the juice Derek had placed in front of her.

"Not yet baby girl, you need to eat your breakfast first. Do you want to eat it here or at the table?" she asked her daughter.

"Here." Gracie answered.

"Ok, here you go." Derek told her placing her plate filled with cut up waffle pieces covered in butter and waffles.

"Thank you, daddy." She said as she stabbed the waffle with her fork.

Derek got a plate ready for Meredith and she took it and sat next to Grace on her right side and Derek followed by sitting on Gracie's left. This breakfast was perfect.

"Mommy, when is your tummy going to pop?" Gracie asked looking up at her mom.

Meredith and Derek both erupted into giggles at their daughter and shared a loving smile with amusement twinkling in both of their eyes.

"What's so funny?" Grace asked confused looking between both her mom and her dad.

"Sweetie, mommy's tummy isn't going to pop. When it's time we'll take mommy to the hospital and then the doctor will make sure the baby is ready and then she will deliver the baby and then you'll have a new baby brother or sister." Derek tried to explain.

"We don't know if it'll be a sister or bruder?" Gracie asked.

"Nope, not yet." Derek said.

"Why not?" Gracie asked.

"Because, daddy wants it to be a surprise even though mommy wants to find out." Meredith told her.

"Oh, so it's like a surprise party." Gracie said.

"Yep, kinda. Ready to find your basket?" Meredith asked as she noticed that her daughter's plate was almost empty.

"Yeah!" Gracie cheered. "What's my hint mommy?"

"It's some place clothing is at." Meredith told her as she began to pick up the plates and clean them off.

Gracie shot up from the chair and started running around the house to all the rooms and places that clothing was kept.

"That should keep her entertained for a while." Derek said while standing up and coming up behind her at the sink to help take care of the dishes. He set the plates onto the counter next to her and wrapped his arms around her. "I missed cuddling with you this morning, you pushed me out of the bed." Derek teased as he pressed a kiss to her neck and felt a soft shiver run down her spine.

"I did not. You wanted me to wake up and I told you I was too tired." She told him.

"I just wanted to cuddle." He told her innocently.

"Right, because that's always what you want early in the morning." Meredith said with a smirk and sly smile.

"It's true. I wanted cuddle time with my wife and growing baby." He told her as she turned in his arms and pulled her in close to his body.

"Hmmm…" Meredith hummed in content. "Me too, do you think it's a boy or a girl?" Meredith asked.

"Oh, uh, I'm not sure. It doesn't matter to me. I just want you and the baby to be healthy." Derek said softly in her ear.

"I know that, but you must want it to be a boy right? So then you aren't outnumbered? You grew up with girls all your life, don't you want a boy to spend time with, and teach to fish?" Meredith asked.

"That does sound perfect, but if it were a girl then I would be just as happy. I love my life with you and Gracie; you girls are my whole world. But, I would love to have a boy and do all the things I did with my dad, and all the things we missed out on." He told her as he remembered his father.

"Oh, Derek, I'm sorry. I want that for you too." Meredith told him. "I want a little boy with your dark curls, and blue eyes and that damn McDreamy smile. That would make our family perfect." She told him.

"It already is, but this baby will make it even more perfect." He told her.

"Mommy! Daddy! I found it! Guess where it was?" Gracie asked them, excitement evident on her face.

"Where?!" Meredith asked with a smile.

"The dryer! The Easter bunny is so silly. Who hides baskets with presents in the dryer? Such a silly rabbit." Gracie said with a twinkle in her eye as she sat down and started to unwrap the present.

"That is really silly." Derek said with a wink towards Meredith.

"What'd you get?" Meredith asked, leaning down to see what was inside the basket with her daughter.

"A new Barbie, some candy…oh! Look! A new jump rope!" she said with a high pitched voice.

Seeing her get this excited made their world completely perfect.

"Are you ready to go up stairs and get in your pretty dress and go to Aunt Izzie's?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah! I wanna show everyone my gifts and tell them how silly the Easter bunny was." Gracie said as she jumped up and ran up stairs to get ready for the big day.

"I'll go get her ready, you can go take a shower and get ready." He told her placing a soft kiss on her cheek before following his daughter.

Meredith took her shower and dressed in one of the only pair of jeans that still fit her and pulled a nice, lavender dress shirt over her pregnant belly. She dried her hair and let the blond curls frame her face, but she didn't bother with the makeup, being pregnant had made her not care anymore.

She entered her daughter's room and saw that she was dressed in her pretty pink dress that she had picked out herself and couldn't wait to wear.

"Gracie, you look beautiful!" Meredith praised.

"Thank you mommy!" Gracie said looking up.

"So do you," Derek said standing up from the floor where he had been sitting and playing with Grace.

"Thank you, the bathroom is open. You can go shower and I'll do her hair." She told him.

"Ok, sounds good." Derek said placing a kiss on her lips.

"You guys kiss a lot," Grace told them with a look of disgust.

"That's because I love your mom very much," Derek told her with a smile.

"Mommy do you love Daddy very much?" Gracie asked.

"Yes I do, that's why I married him." Meredith told Grace.

"You marry him? What that mean?" Gracie asked.

"That means your mommy is going to have to spend the rest of her life with me." Derek said with a chuckle.

"Forever and ever?" Grace asked.

"Yes, forever and ever." Meredith answered.

"Ok," Grace said before turning back to her new toys.

"What was that all about?" Meredith asked Derek softly.

"I don't know, but she was right, we do kiss a lot." He told her, proving his point by placing a soft kiss on her lips.

"Yeah, are you complaining? Because you've been doing all the kissing." She teased.

"Hey, it's a two way part. And no, I'm not complaining. I like kissing you, more kissing I say." Derek said.

"You're an idiot. Go take your shower." She told him.

"You shouldn't call me an idiot in front of our children. Especially this little one," Derek said before leaning down and placing a soft kiss on her round, hard stomach. Just then, the baby kicked and Derek backed up a bit to look up at Meredith.

"Always happens when you kiss my stomach." She told him, running a comforting hand through his hair.

"I love it," Derek said with a smile.

"Go take your shower, or we're leaving without you." Meredith told him with a giggle.

"God, you're bossy." He told her with a grin as he moved down the hall to their bedroom.

Meredith moved with Grace into the bathroom and tried her best to do her daughters hair with her large belly in the way. She was ready for the next two months to go by so then the baby would be with them and her pregnant body would go away. She loved carrying their child and taking care of the baby inside her, but she so desperately wanted to hold their little miracle in her arms and shower him/her in kisses.

"Mommy, I really, really love you." Gracie told Meredith as she looked up at her.

"Awe, baby I really, really love you too." Meredith said as she blinked away the mist of tears in her eyes.

She and Derek couldn't wait to have their new baby come into their life. They already had the perfect life with their daughter, and adding another one would just add to their happiness. The next two months couldn't come soon enough.

**There you go! Happy with it? Hate it? Let me know. **

**Also, those who are also reading my other story, I will try to get an update tomorrow. I really will. I'm sorry I haven't stayed on top of things but I'm really hoping for that to change soon.**

**Read. Love. Review.**


	10. Mommy's Day

**I don't know how, but somehow I totally forgot about doing a Mother's Day update for this story. I was sitting in class the other day and my teacher asked us what we were planning for mother's day and it made me think of what Gracie and Derek would do for Meredith on Mother's day. So, lucky for you guys I thought of it and you are getting another update! Let's see what cute little Grace will do for her mommy!**

"Gracie," Derek whispered softly as he woke his daughter up.

"Grace," he said a little louder, but still in a soft tone to wake her softly.

"Daddy?" she asked opening her green eyes to see him leaning over her. She blinked the sleep from her eyes and continued to stare at him.

"Yeah bug, it's time to wake up. Do you remember what today is?" he asked her.

"Uhm…" she bit her bottom lip while she tried desperately to remember. She looked just like Meredith did when she was deep in thought, and it made Derek chuckle. "Mommy's day!" she finally said, happy to have gotten the answer right.

"That's right! I was going to go down stairs and start making breakfast for her so we can surprise her in bed with it. How does that sound?" he asked.

"Is she going to eat it in bed?" she asked.

"If she wants." Derek told her.

"But, we're not allowed to eat in bed, that's silly." She told him.

"Well, it's mommy's day and so it's a special day and mommy can eat in our bed." Derek tried to explain to her. He didn't need to tell her that Meredith and Derek often ate in their bed. Late night snacks were always shared in bed together while talking about their day or relaxing and watching T.V. She wouldn't understand why she couldn't do the same.

"Oh, ok. Let's make her pancakes! With chocolate chips! Those are her favorite." Gracie said in her sweet, little voice.

"They also happen to be your favorite," Derek said with a chuckle. "You're just like your mother." Derek told her with a smile.

"That a good thing. My mommy's_ amazing_!" Gracie declared with excitement.

"That she is my little bug, let's go make her food now." Derek told her.

They entered the kitchen and Derek set all the ingredients on the island so they were easy for her to reach. As he took over the major things, he let her crack an egg, poor some milk, and mix it together. He made sure the batter was perfect, and then he let her add the chocolate chips, which happened to be her favorite part.

"Good job, Grace." Derek praised.

"Thank you, Daddy. How much longer?" she asked.

"Well, I'm going to make mommy's food and put it on a tray with some other nice things and then we'll go wake her up. Do you want to eat now?" he asked her.

"Yeah!" Grace answered.

"Ok," Derek said before he removed a small pancake that was golden off the frying pan and onto her plate. He helped her poor syrup on it and cut it up for her. As she ate her pancake, Derek prepared the tray to take to Meredith. He placed some flowers he got for her on the tray along with some fruit, toast and finally the sugar filled pancakes. Once Grace was done with her food, they started to go up stairs.

Gracie opened the door for her dad, excited to wake her mom and show her their hard work from that morning.

"Wake her up carefully, Grace." Derek told her. He never knew how Meredith's mood would be in the morning, especially with her being pregnant, but he knew if Grace did it then she would definitely be ok.

"Mommy," she sang in a sing-songy voice. "Time to wake up! It's your day!"

Derek let out a chuckle as he watched his wife's clone try to wake her mother. Meredith was always hard to wake up, but watching his daughter wake her up made him laugh.

"Come on, Mommy!" Grace said, getting frustrated.

"I'm up, I'm up." Meredith said turning around to look at their daughter.

The sun was coming in through the blinds a little bit and it seemed to embrace Meredith and Grace in its warmth, casting a glow upon them. Derek felt him lose his breath at the beautiful sight of the two of them. They were his whole world; Meredith, Gracie, and their new baby nestled inside his beautiful wife. Her beauty still took his breath away every time he looked at her. He couldn't imagine just how much he still loved her, and how that love seemed to grow more with each day.

"Hey, Derek, what are you doing over there?" Meredith asked with an amused smile. They had been trying to get his attention for a while now, but he seemed to be off in a daze.

"Oh, sorry. Gracie, tell mommy what we did for her." Derek said with a smile.

"We made you breakfast!" she exclaimed, waiting for her mother's reaction.

Every year on this day, Derek made her breakfast in bed but he never woke Gracie before. So this year, it was definitely a surprise to have their daughter sitting in their bed telling her they made breakfast.

"You did?" Meredith asked surprised.

"Yep, chocolate chips pancakes." She said.

"Wow, my favorite! You remembered." Meredith said, sharing a loving smile with Derek.

"Yeah, mommy!" she said.

Derek placed the tray down in front of Meredith and joined his family on his side of the bed.

Meredith sat up and started to eat her food, enjoying the variety they placed on the tray.

"This is delicious," Meredith told them. "Thank you very much, Grace." She said.

"You're welcome! I'm gonna go get your gift and card mommy." She said before getting off the bed and making her way to her room.

"She's so cute," Meredith said.

"She seems to take after her mother with that," Derek said scooting closer to her and placing a kiss on her forehead.

"Thank you, Derek. For the breakfast and everything. It was delicious." She told him.

"You're welcome. Thank you for being the best mother to my children. I couldn't imagine anyone else being as amazing as you. I wouldn't want anyone else being their mother." He told her sincerely.

"Thanks, Derek," Meredith said with tears in her eyes. "I love you,"

"Oh, I love you so much." Derek said.

"Does this mean I have to top this on Father's day?" she asked with a giggle.

"Oh, yeah. I definitely expect you to plan something big." He said.

"Well, your child might be born on that day." She told him.

"That would be…amazing." Derek said, suddenly wishing for that to happen.

"No, you deserve to have that day be your day. If he/she is born on that day then from now on we'll have to celebrate their birthday on that day, and you wouldn't get a whole day." She told him.

"My birthday," he told her.

"No, you deserve a day to award you for being the best dad." She told him.

"I think it would be amazing." He told her.

"How about he/she is born a day before or after? Then I'll still count it as your gift." She told him with a laugh.

"That works too, either way it's the best gift." He told her.

Her due date was quickly approaching as the days went by in May, and Meredith was surprising still doing ok. She got uncomfortable more quickly, but other than that she seemed to be ok.

"Hey, little one." Derek said, lowering himself so he was level with her stomach. "You need to be nice to mommy today, because today is Mother's day. Can you do that for me, bud?" he asked as he felt a few kicks to his hand.

Meredith let out a giggle at the feeling, "You're telling him not to kick, and you're making him kick, Derek." She said with a giggle. "Also, if you keep calling him bud, and he turns out to be a girl we're going to have problems." She told him.

"Yeah, well you're calling him a he too." He said.

"Because, I think he is a boy. I have mother's intuition." She said with a smile.

"You're so beautiful." He told her as he took in her smile.

"Thank you," she told him with a slight blush.

"Gracie can spend the day with her mommy, but tonight I want to spend time with my wife." He told her suggestively.

"Promise?" she asked him.

"Oh, yes." He said right before Gracie came back in the room.

"Here mommy!" she exclaimed before jumping up on the bed and placing a card, and gift in her mom's lap.

Meredith picked up the home-made card and took in the picture her daughter drew of the two of them. The card said 'Happy Mother's Day' written in Derek's hand writing, but Gracie had written her name that she had been learning, and practicing for weeks now.

"Thank you, baby, I love it." She told her before pulling her daughter in for a hug and kissing her.

"It's from baby too," Gracie told her.

"It is?" Meredith asked. She was very happy that Gracie was accepting the thought of a new baby brother or sister soon.

"Yep," Gracie said simply. "Now open your gift!"

Meredith tore the paper away from the small box. It was wrapped with Gracie's help, and it had tape everywhere, but Meredith was able to get it off and opened the box. Inside sat a large heart shaped diamond, with a smaller one next to it.

"The big one is your heart, and the little one is mine." Gracie told her.

"It's beautiful," Meredith said with tears in her eyes' again.

"Mommy, don't cry. I didn't mean to make you cry."

"You didn't baby, you made me happy. These are happy tears, because I love your gift." She said.

"Oh, ok. I love you, mommy." She said wrapping her tiny arms around her mother's neck.

"I love you too, baby girl." Meredith said with a smile towards Derek.

"Gracie, why don't you go get dressed so you can go do stuff with mommy today." Derek said.

"Ok," Grace said before exiting the room again.

"I love it, Derek, thank you." Meredith said fingering the necklace still in the box.

"Good, I'm glad. Grace picked it out." He told her.

"But you took her there, and bought it and I'm so lucky to have you." She told him.

"You've made me a father, Mer, I owe you so much more for that." He told her.

"No, you don't owe me. I love being a mother, and I have you to thank for that." She said.

"We're both lucky," He told her.

"We are, what are the plans for today?" she asked.

"Well, my gift to you is for you and Grace to go get manicures and pedicures. She's young, but she'll enjoy spending time with her mom and getting her nails done. Also, that will give you something relaxing to do. Then, when you get home we'll have dinner, watch a movie with Grace, then put her to bed, then I plan to make as much love to you before you get too tired." He told her, placing soft kisses along her cheeks and neck.

"That all sounds amazing," Meredith said, pulling his head down and placing a tender kiss on his lips. "Put my necklace on,"

He sat up and placed the necklace around her neck, placing a soft kiss on the back of her neck sending a shiver down her spine.

"I love you," he said, looking in her eyes.

"I love you too, so much." She said.

Later that night Meredith finished reading Gracie her story and tucked her in. They had enjoyed their manicures and pedicures at the salon and afterwards all three of them had a nice dinner that Derek had prepared.

Now, Gracie lay in bed staring up at her mom while they exchanged goodnight kisses.

"Mommy?" she asked softly.

"Yeah?" Meredith whispered.

"Did you have a good day?" she asked.

"Oh, of course I did. I got to spend it with my favorite girl." Meredith told her.

"Good, because I really wanted you to have fun." She said.

"Well, I did. Thank you for being such a good girl and also for my beautiful gift. I love it." Meredith said, fingering her gift.

"You're welcome. I love you, Mommy. All the way to heaven and back." Gracie told her as she tried to fight off the sleep.

"I love you too, baby girl. All the way to heaven and back. And your nails look beautiful." Meredith said.

"Thank you mommy, goodnight." She said.

"Goodnight, sweet dreams." Meredith said softly, placing a kiss on her forehead before leaving the room.

Meredith entered her bedroom and saw Derek sitting in bed, reading a medical journal.

"Hey, is she asleep?" he asked.

"Yeah, she was exhausted. She had fun getting her nails done though." Meredith said, joining her husband.

"Good, I'm glad my girls had fun." He said, putting the book on the end table and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her to his body.

"We did, she was so cute. She loved being pampered. And I loved having my feet rubbed." She said.

"Is that a hint?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Maybe," Meredith said with a giggle.

"I'll massage them every day until the baby is born." He told her.

"And after that?" she asked.

"I will continue it as much as you want," he said.

"Ok, we'll see how long that lasts." She said with a laugh. "Thank you so much for today, Derek. I really had a great day." She said.

"You're welcome, but the nights not over. Are you up to the final gift I promised you?" he asked.

"Always," Meredith said before he captured her lips in a passionate kiss and the rest of the night was spent showering her in the love he felt towards the mother to his children.

It was perfect Mother's Day.

**What'd you think?!?! I hope you liked it, and I guess the next update will be Father's Day! I hope all the mom's out there enjoyed their mother's day and I hope everyone spent some time with their mom today. I have an amazing one, and enjoyed the day with her!**

**REVIEW PLEASE!**

**Thank you for reading! **


	11. Father's Day

**Hello all! :D ****I hope everyone had a great day with their dad's on Father's Day! Here's an update, one you guys were probably waiting for, about our favorite dad we love to stare at and dream about! (: So, here it goes!**

…

"Is tomorrow daddy's day?" Gracie asked her mother the night before father's day as Meredith helped her daughter wrap the father's day gift that Grace had made her dad.

Meredith had been on maternity leave for a while now since the arrival of their little one was coming up any day now. Derek had also taken a couple weeks off before the expected due date to help Meredith and be there with her if she went into labor, but reluctantly he went into work for a couple hours since he got paged. Secretly, Meredith had called the Chief and asked him if he could find a surgery Derek could be called in on to get him out of the house. She loved having her husband around, and she loved that he was so helpful and caring towards her but she needed him out of the house for two reasons.

The first reason was that she needed to spend time with her daughter to wrap the gift Gracie had made him, and they needed to make preparations for his very own special day. A day where Meredith and Gracie could show just how much they appreciated him being the great father he was.

The second reason she had him called in was that if she had to spend another day of him constantly checking up on her, asking if she needed anything, or watching her intensively then she was going to bust. She loved her husband, no doubt about it. How could you not with that beautiful raven head of hair, dazzling blue eyes, and charming smile? But right now, she needed a breather from him for just a couple hours. She knew he was anxious for the baby to come, they both were, but she needed a couple hours with just her and her daughter.

Baby Shepherd was expected at any moment. Her due date was in two days and when she was pregnant with Gracie she had been a week early. The household was excited for the baby to arrive, and Derek's family back home was anxiously waiting for the call and his mom had tickets to come out on hold ready to fly out whenever baby made its arrival. The staff at the hospital had it all worked out on who worked during what hours for when she finally went into labor and also who could babysit Grace when the time was right, and now they were all just waiting.

"Yes, tomorrow is daddy's day. We have to hurry up and wrap your present and start eating dinner so when daddy comes home he won't know we were wrapping his gift. It's a surprise for him." Meredith told her daughter. She took pictures of Grace wrapping it, and finally after she was done using almost all of the tape they hid the gift somewhere Derek wouldn't find it.

"Ok, now what do you want for dinner?" Meredith asked her as they walked back in the kitchen.

"Uhmmm…" Gracie hummed. "Macaroni and cheese!" She squealed. It was her new favorite meal, and convinently one of the only things Meredith knew how to make.

"You're going to turn into a noodle with how much Mac and cheese you eat." Meredith told her as she pulled a box from the pantry.

"That's silly mommy! I'm a girl, I can't turn into a noodle." Gracie giggled.

"You can't? Well then…I guess I'll just have to settle with you being my little girl." Meredith told her.

"Mommy, can I sit in here with you while you make dinner?" she asked.

"Sure, sweetie. You don't want to go play?" Meredith asked.

"No, I wanna spend time with you." The little girl smiled.

"Awe, that's sweet Gracie. I would love if you stayed in here with me, do you want to color up on the stool while we wait for it to be done?" she asked.

"Yeah!" Gracie said with excitement as she ran to get her coloring books and crayons.

Once she arrived back in the kitchen and Meredith got the water boiling they both sat at the island counter and began to color.

"I'm coloring this one for baby," Gracie told her mom.

"Really? Which one?" Meredith looked to see which picture and was unaware of the third party that had just entered the kitchen, and had taken his position leaning against the wall.

From Derek's eyes it was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. The summer sun was coming in through the windows in the kitchen and casting its soft glow on his whole world. The golden hues in Meredith's hair and his daughter's sparkled as the sun brightened them, and their smiles lit up the room more than the sun did. He lost himself in looking lovingly at his beautiful wife, who was about to pop at any moment but looked so cute pregnant, and his adorable daughter as she drabbled off to her mom about her picture. This was his life, and he couldn't wait for their little one to join them and complete their family even more.

"There are my favorite girls!" Derek said, deciding to make his presence known.

Both girls smiled up at him, but Gracie got down off her stool carefully and ran to hug her father. She loved spending time with her parents, and was soaking up the time now before the baby came along.

"How's my little girl?" Derek asked picking her up and placing a kiss on her forehead before holding her tight. He loved that she was still tiny enough to pick up and cuddle with, and she fit so well in his arms. He couldn't wait for another little one to snuggle with.

"Great! We're having macaroni and cheese for dinner!" Gracie said, fumbling over the sentence because of her excitement.

"Again?" Derek asked her.

"Yep! It's my faworite." She said, stumbling over another tough word.

"Your favorite?" Derek asked her.

"Yep!" She said, starting to squirm.

"Do you want down?" Derek asked her, holding her a little tighter, just to tease her.

"Daddy! I want down!" She said with a giggle.

"Nope, not yet. Not till I get a kiss." Derek said with a smile.

"No, I want down." She said, shaking her long, curly blond hair side to side. "Mommy, help!" she said with her mother's giggle that Derek loved. Her arms were stretched out for her mom, but Meredith just smiled at her.

"I can't help you, you ran to him and you better give him a kiss before he does something like tickles you!" Meredith said with a laugh.

"No!" Gracie screamed as she turned back in her father's arms and saw him almost move a hand to her stomach to start tickling her.

Derek ignored her screaming and tickled her lightly on the stomach, causing a fit of girlish, beautiful, melodic giggles escape into the air. An echo of the giggles came from Meredith as she laughed at Gracie.

God, he loved his life.

"Daddy! Stop please!" she said with giggles still coming out.

"Fine, but I want a kiss." He said releasing his hand on her stomach and looked at her with his clear blue eyes.

She leaned forward and gave her dad a big, sloppy kiss. "Thank you, baby girl!" he said with a chuckle as he let her down.

Once her little feet touched the hard-wood floor she took off out of the kitchen and ran to her play room with her loud giggles filling the air she left behind.

"My beautiful wife, how was today?" he asked as he walked over to her as she stood stirring the noodles. He wrapped his arms around her and their baby and nuzzled his nose in her hair, smelling the fresh scent of lavender and the smell he would always know as his wife. He loved the scent.

"Great. It was nice spending time with her, especially since the baby will be here soon." She said placing the wooden spoon on the counter and leaning back in his arms, and placing her hands on top of his, which lay resting on her big stomach. Even though she had wanted a couple hours with him gone, she loved being back in his arms. She loved her husband, and he was such a great dad to her children.

"I bet, I can't wait till we see our little one." He told her as he swayed from side to side with her. "Do you think it's a boy or a girl?" he asked.

"Really? You're asking again?" she laughed.

"Yep," he said.

"Ok, I think it's a boy." She told him. "You?"

"Hmm, I don't know. I don't have mother's intuition but I think it might be a girl. It doesn't matter to me, I'm just so happy and excited to have another baby with the love of my life." He told her, placing a kiss on her neck.

"Derek, I love you." She told him as she turned in his arms.

"I love you too, Meredith. I'm so thankful to have you as my wife and the mother for my children. You're everything to me, and everything I need." He told her as he captured her lips in a soft kiss that translated just how much he loved her.

….

"Goodnight baby girl," Meredith said bending down to give her daughter a soft kiss goodnight.

"Night, mommy. We surprise daddy tomorrow." She said in a soft whisper.

Meredith laughed, "Yes we do." She kissed her daughter one last time then exited the room and stood in the hallway. She began to walk to their bedroom where Derek was waiting for her, but felt a sudden tang on pain hit her body. Her hand immediately went to her stomach and she entered the bedroom. Derek was lying in the bed and looked up with a smile, until he saw the look of pain etched on his wife's face.

"Mer, what's wrong?" he asked concerned.

"I think my body's just…preparing itself." Meredith told him.

"Do we need to get you to the hospital?" he asked.

"No, not yet. But soon I think." She told him.

"Mer, please, can we just go now. I don't like seeing you in pain, and if it's time or almost time then we need to get ready and go." He told her, coming to her side and wrapping an arm around her.

"Ok, I'm going to go take a shower. And instead of hovering outside the door, you can call Izzie and ask her to come watch Gracie, then call the hospital and tell Lexie we're on our way. Also, make sure we have everything ready in case I do go into labor." She told him.

"Ok, but your bag and the baby's is already at the hospital in my office, and the car seat is hooked up. We're good." He told her, placing a soft kiss on her forehead that was frowning in pain. "And I don't hover." He told her with a smile, achieving what he wanted by getting a giggle out of his wife.

She left his side and entered the bathroom to have a quick shower. He didn't understand why they didn't just go to the hospital. The baby was coming, so they should just go there and prepare for their baby to arrive in their life. But, he also knew not to argue with his pregnant wife and knew if she thought she wasn't in labor yet, then they were good on time. He let her shower as he called Izzie and then Lexie. Both women were thrilled of the news, and Izzie made it to the house just as Meredith came downstairs dressed to go to the hospital. They were ready.

"Thank you, Izzie, for coming and watching her. You can go to sleep in the guest room and we'll call with news." Meredith told her.

"No problem, we'll be anxiously awaiting your call." She told them.

"Oh, Grace doesn't know we're leaving, Derek." She told him.

"She'll be fine, Mer. She loves Izzie." He reassured her.

"Fine, whatever." Meredith said before leaving the house and waddled to the car.

"Did you call your mom?" she asked him as they sat in the car and made their journey to the hospital.

"No, not yet." He told her.

"Well, what are you waiting for? You want the baby to already be here before she knows to come?" Meredith told him in a harsh tone. The pain was getting worse, and she knew she was now in labor.

"You told me you weren't in labor yet, so in case this was a false alarm I thought we should wait." He told her.

"There are no more false alarms, Derek! My due date is in two days that means this is freakin labor! You're such an idiot sometimes, and you're even a doctor! God, this freaking hurts!" she yelled as she braced herself with the pain.

"Ok, Mer. Calm down, remember to breathe, and squeeze my hand." He told her, trying not to laugh at her earlier statements. He knew not to take the idiot thing to heart, she was in pain, giving him a child, and plus she always called him that.

"Derek! Do NOT tell me to calm down when a little person is trying to push themselves through my body, don't remind me to breathe because I've been through this before, and I will definitely be squeezing something else VERY hard if you do not shut the hell up and call your mother!" she yelled.

He did as she said and pulled his phone out, quickly telling his mother the news. She excitedly responded and demanded to speak to his wife. "Mer, do you wanna talk to her?" he asked.

"Give me the phone," She snapped, grabbing the phone.

"Hey mom, no it's ok. The pain isn't too bad, we're on our way now. Izzie is watching Grace and Lexie is waiting for us now at the hospital. Have a safe flight and call us as soon as you get in. Ok, I will. Love you too." Was all that Derek heard as his wife used a nicer tone with his mom then she had earlier with him. Figures.

She shut the phone and handed it back to him without saying a word to him.

"Mer?" he asked gently.

"What?" she said in a tired tone.

"How are you doing?" he asked.

"Derek, get me to the hospital now." Was all she said before looking out the window as they navigated the streets.

"I'm trying to get there as soon as possible." He told her, reaching a hand over to hers' and was relieved to feel her grab his back. "I love you, Meredith, so much."

"I love you too," she said and squeezed his hand as another jolt of pain ran through her body.

…

Three hours and five minutes later a new baby boy was born with the name Michael Derek Shepherd.

"Here he is," the doctor said as she brought the new baby over to his parents after he had been cleaned to some point. They anxiously sat waiting to hold their newborn.

"You got your boy, Derek." She told him, flashing him a smile.

"I did, and he actually looks like me." Derek said with pride. The little bundle was placed in Meredith's arms and she held the baby tight and looked down at him. She pulled the blue cap back from his head a little to see the dark curls, and he opened his eyes briefly to reveal that he had his father's dreamy blue eyes. He was perfect.

"He has my nose, thank God." Meredith said with a chuckle.

"He does, he's perfect." He said.

"Happy Father's day, Der." She told him. He looked at the nearest clocked that read 12:10. Ten minutes into Father's Day and his son happened to be born on the same day as well.

"This is the best Father's Day gift." He told her in a whisper as he looked down at their son.

"Well, I'm glad you think so because I left your gift at home." She told him.

"Yeah? What was it?" he asked.

"Just some fishing gear stuff, and then I was going to give you sex, but now you have to wait a long time for that." She told him.

"That's ok, I wouldn't trade this day for anything. It's already the best father's day." He told her.

"You know, I won the bet." She told him.

"What bet?" he asked.

"It's a boy. You thought he was a girl!" she told him.

"We didn't bet." He told her.

"We did," she told him.

"Whatever Mer, I love his name." he changed the topic.

"Me too, he holds your dad's name and yours. God help us," Meredith said with a giggle.

"Hey!" he said with a loud chuckle, which caused their little one's eyes to open wide and look towards the sound.

"He's perfect, Meredith, thank you so much for giving me a son. I love you so much," he told her placing a kiss on her lips tenderly and then placing a soft one on Michael's soft forehead. He inhaled the scent of their new baby and smiled. This day had been perfect, and the moment when their daughter joined them, that would make it even more perfect.

"You're welcome. Thank you for making me a mother…again." She said with a smile. "I love you." She said.

…..

**There you go! Baby Shepherd is FINALLY here! :D Yay! Comment please. I don't know when this story will end, I guess when I get done being inspired. If there are any other holidays or ideas you would like chapters about, then let me know! Thank you greatly for reading and reviewing!**


	12. 4th of July

**Thank you everyone for reviewing and suggesting I write a chapter for 4****th**** of July. I hope everyone had a nice, safe holiday and there were no fire injuries! (: Here's an update on the Shepherd family with the cute, new bundle of joy!**

Michael Derek Shepherd was two weeks old. He was brought home with his mom, dad and big sister all eager to introduce him to all his surroundings and show him his nursery. Since they didn't know the sex before he was born, he was welcomed into a soft yellow room with pictures of his family lining the wall. Since they now had a little boy, they added colors of blue to the room.

His crib was a beautiful oak and his changing table matched. Stuff animals had been picked out by Gracie, eager to start his collection early, and they were placed throughout his room.

The first week had been exhausting. Even though Michael was a very good baby, they still had to juggle two children now and that had become a new challenge. Gracie had accepted him well into the family, excited to be a big sister, but she still had her moments when she didn't want to share the attention.

At this moment, Meredith and Derek were snuggled close to each other in their bed like most nights and their new addition was sleeping peacefully in the bassinette next to them. Derek's arms were wrapped around Meredith in a loving, protective way that they always felt the most comfortable sleeping in. They heard the starting sounds of Michael's cries and they both woke up.

"I'll get up with him this time, Mer. Go back to sleep." He said placing a kiss on her neck before beginning to turn over.

"Thank you, love you." She said, pulling him back and kissing him on his lips in a loving way.

"I have morning breath," he said with a chuckle.

"I still love you," she said with a giggle before turning away. "There's a bottle of my milk in the fridge for him." she added before falling to sleep again.

Derek walked to his son and scooped him up in his arms, wrapping him in his arms and gently starting to soothe him. He left their bedroom and began to speak with his son.

"Hey, bud. Are you hungry?" he asked softly while descending down the stairs, careful not to wake Grace.

He made it to the kitchen and got the bottle for Michael, warming it up and then moved to the living room to begin feeding his son. "I know this isn't as good as being with Mommy, but she's really tired." Derek spoke softly to him.

He still couldn't believe he was a dad again. He had a new baby to take care of and shower with love. He looked down at his son in awe as he was met with bright, blue eyes identical to his and smile. He ran his finger softly over his son's dark curls and then brought his finger to his son's fingers. Immediately Michael attached his whole hand around Derek's finger, wrapping it in a tight embrace as he continued to stare up at him. God, he loved his little bundle of joy in his arms.

"You know, you look just like I did in my baby pictures. You see, your sister looks just like your mommy. She has her blonde hair, and green eyes, the button nose, and melodic giggle, and beautiful smile and then there's also the pout that she inherited. She's a clone of Mommy. It's a good thing you came along looking like me. You have my hair and my eyes which your mommy loves, you have my smile so far and if you keep that up your mommy won't be able to say no to you either. Although you do have your mom's nose, which is good too." Derek spoke, bonding with his son in the early hours of the morning.

"Your mommy is beautiful, and so is your big sister. I'm very happy that Grace looks like your mom, because your mother is breathtakingly beautiful. You know, I fell in love with your mom the moment I saw her. I looked in her eyes and I just knew that she was right for me." Derek said as his son continued to suck on the bottle, eager to eat. "She looked at me and gave me that smile, and then added that giggle and I knew I was hooked. From then on I loved her and I've only loved her more and more each day. She's so beautiful, even when you've spit up on her and she hasn't showered all day, she's still stunning."

"You're very lucky to have her as your mom, little man. She always worried about being a good mom to your sister, but she's been a natural at it. Sometimes I think Gracie likes her more than me, you probably will too. I'm glad I have a son now though, we can go fishing. I went when I was little with your Grandpa, I'll teach you when you grow up and when we need an escape from the women in our house. They may drive us crazy, but we love them. No matter what we will always love them." Derek said as he took the empty bottle from his son's mouth and began to burp him.

Derek sat there and spoke softly to his son before he drifted back to sleep and Derek decided to head back up stairs. He placed a soft kiss on his son's head before lowering him to the bassinette. "Goodnight bud, remember all I told you." Derek said softly to not wake Meredith or Michael.

He returned to his side of the bed and wrapped his arms around his wife, pulling her close.

"What did you tell my baby?" she asked his softly, surprising him since he thought she was still asleep.

"Just some father and son bonding." Derek said.

"You better not be bad mouthing me to my baby, Derek, because I can turn our children against you." Meredith said with an amused voice.

"You wouldn't! Also, I would never bad mouth you, Mer, to anyone let alone our children. I have no reason or anything to say that would be bad anyway." He said.

"Then tell me what you said." She said turning in his arms to look at him.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping while he is?" Derek asked.

"Oh no, don't try that. Tell me."

"I just told him how lucky we were to have you and Gracie, how much I loved you, when I fell in love with you and I told him we would go fishing when he got older." Derek said.

"That's sweet Der," she said in a whisper. "You're really happy to have a boy, huh?" she asked.

"I am, I love him. And I can't wait till he gets earlier when I can take him out there fishing, but I would've been completely happy if we had another little princess around here." He said running his hands through her hair and kissing her on the forehead.

"I love you, Derek." She said softly, running her hands through his hair as well.

"I love you too, Meredith. Thank you for giving me two beautiful children. I love our family," he said.

"Hmmm, me too. They're perfect." She said with a smile as she felt her eyes close, heavy with sleep.

"Go to sleep Mer, you get to get up with him next." He said with a chuckle.

"I'll just tell him all about you," she said with a smile.

"Just be nice," he said wrapping his arms around her.

"Always," she said softly, falling asleep soon after.

"Happy fourth of July, mommy!" Gracie cheered the following morning at breakfast.

"Morning baby girl," she said with a smile as she entered the kitchen seeing Derek already at the stove making pancakes as Michael was in his swingy, gliding softly as he dozed off. She went to Gracie and gave her a kiss, making sure she gave her attention by listening to her share the dream she had the previous night. Meredith nodded and smiled at her before going over to see Derek.

"Thank you for getting up with them," she said before wrapping her arms around his waist.

"You're welcome, you stayed up with him for a long time after me last night. I thought something might've been wrong." He said, turning around in her arms to look at her.

"Nope, he just didn't want to sleep. Apparently his dad told him exciting stories before he went to bed and he wanted to stay up and share them with me." Meredith said.

"Well, they were great stories." Derek said with a charming smile.

"Yeah, I bet." Meredith said, rolling her eyes. "What're the plans for tonight?" Meredith asked.

"I thought we could go to the cliff and watch fireworks." Derek said.

"That sounds good, but what about Michael? The fireworks might be too loud for him." Meredith said.

"If so then we'll come home," Derek said.

"No, Gracie would be sad and she shouldn't have to not watch them because of him. If he doesn't like them then I'll come back with him." Meredith said.

"Ok, hopefully he likes them." Derek said.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because, every year we've been together we go up there and watch fireworks. You're always in my arms and I always think of how lucky I am to have you. It's our thing." He said.

"That's sweet Der, you have to have a word with your son if that doesn't work out for you though." Meredith said.

"Oh I will," Derek said turning off the stove and carrying the plate of pancakes to the table for Grace.

Meredith and Derek joined Grace at the table and they couldn't help but share a smile. This was their family, with Gracie talking animatedly about whatever could come to mind and little Michael dozing lightly next to them. This was perfect

….

"Mommy, I wanna sit on your lap!" Gracie said as they sat on the cliff. They had blankets wrapped around them and Michael was snuggled in Meredith's arms wrapped in a warm blanket.

Gracie was excited for the fourth of July. She was wearing a cute red, white and blue dress that had stars all over it. She loved it, and wouldn't change even though she knew it was going to be cold. Michael was also all decked out for the holiday in his patriotic onesie and navy bottoms to keep him warm.

"Ok, sweetie." Meredith said as she handed Michael to Derek.

They sat in lawn chairs awaiting the firework show that would start over the Elliot Bay. In the past years Meredith and Derek always watched them. The first time they did together was when they were dating and they were on the ferry watching them. But ever since then, they've always watched them from their cliff. They would pull lawn chairs up or before Grace they would find comfort in each other's arms and blankets and watch them. It was their thing like Derek had said earlier.

As they sat and waited for the fireworks to start, Gracie and Meredith enjoyed some snacks munching on popcorn and icecream. It was a weird combination but they loved it. While they ate their unhealthy treats Derek just laughed while munching on an apple. This was their family, and he wouldn't trade it for the world.

Suddenly, a pop rang out and a blast of firework lit up the sky. Gracie gasped in shock, forgetting their treats, and pointed eagerly at the firework.

"Mommy, look! Blue!" Grace cheered.

"I see!" Meredith said with a giggle, loving her daughter's excitement. She turned her attention to Derek to make sure Michael was ok. "How is he?" she asked.

"Sleeping still, he hasn't even opened his eyes since we've come out here." Derek said with a smile.

The fireworks kept lighting off, and Gracie's excitement was contagious. Derek watched in awe as the fireworks lit up his wife and daughter's face. They were beautiful. Just then he felt Michael move before he let out a wail.

"Doesn't sound like he's going to want to last through the show," Derek said looking at his wife.

"Ok, you can stay with Grace. I'll go back to the house." Meredith said getting up.

"Mommy, no. I want you to stay." Grace said.

"Gracie, Michael wants to go home. You can stay with daddy."

"No, I want you." Gracie said throwing on her pouting face and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Mer, its fine. Stay, I'll go back. Maybe tonight there will still be some shooting off and we can watch from our balcony." Derek said.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Positive." Derek said, placing a soft kiss on top of her head as he stood with their son in his arms still.

"We'll see you when we get back. If he gets hungry I pumped some milk earlier and it's in the fridge." She told him.

"Sounds good, be careful coming back in." he said.

"We will," She said, smiling up at him then turning back around to watch the fireworks with her daughter.

….

Later, after the fireworks had gone through their big finale and Gracie was positive they were done being let off, they packed up and headed back home. They entered the house and Meredith led Grace up the stairs. She was already in her pajamas she just had to brush her teeth before climbing into bed.

"Go brush your teeth, I'm going to go check on Michael." Meredith said, entering her room.

She looked up to see Derek in his pajamas under the covers reading a medical journal, while Michael slept soundly in the bassinette next to him. Meredith's face lit up at the sight of her two favorite guys bonding in a peaceful way.

"There's my favorite guy," Meredith said as she looked at Derek.

"Just reading a medical journal," he said with a smile, eager to have her come near him and wrap her in his arms. He wanted to be close to her, for some reason he felt the need to have her in his arms.

"Not you, my baby boy." Meredith said with a teasing smile.

"Mean, that was just…mean." Derek grumbled, failing to hide his smile.

Meredith looked down at Michael and placed a soft kiss on his head before feeling Derek's need to have her close.

She climbed onto the bed and wiggled into his arms, placing the journal next to them. They lay wrapped in each other's arms enjoying their time together. "How was he when you got home?" Meredith asked softly, as she ran her hands up and down his sides.

"Fine, he ate and we played a little bit." Derek said with a smile.

"Played? Derek, he's only two weeks old, you can't really play." Meredith giggled.

"We did what we could." He said with a laugh.

"I have to go check on Grace and put her to bed, wanna come?" she asked getting up.

"Sure, we can tuck her in together." He said.

"Perfect,"

They tucked Grace in and said their goodnight's while also sharing kisses. They returned to their bedroom and Meredith grabbed a pair of pajamas to change into. She was still trying to get her body back, and even though she knew Derek loved her no matter what and thought she was beautiful, she still changed in the bathroom.

"You didn't have to do that, you know." Derek said as she came out of the bathroom.

"I know…I just, I feel self conscious in this body." She told him.

"You're beautiful, Mer." Derek said pulling her into his arms. "I love you more and more each day. And you're always beautiful to me. Even when you haven't showered and Michael's thrown up on you. You're gorgeous." He told her softly.

"Thank you, Der, that helps." She said with a giggle.

"I mean it," he said.

"I know," she said with a nod. "Let's go out on the balcony." She told him, grabbing his hand and making him follow her. They left the door open so they could listen for Michael if he were to cry.

They went to the rail and Meredith noticed a few fireworks off in the distance. Close enough to see them in their beauty, but far enough away so that the noise couldn't be heard as well. "They're still so pretty, Gracie loved looking at them tonight." Meredith said in a soft voice.

"She was so cute with them. Remember last year's Fourth of July?" Derek asked.

"Oh yeah, it was very dirty once our little princess was in bed." Meredith said with a giggle.

"It was, it was a great day." Derek said.

"I'm sorry I can't give you dirty this year," Meredith said as she turned in his arms and looked up at him.

"It's ok, you gave me a son two weeks ago, and that is so incredible. I love you so much of the family you've given me." He told her, kissing her passionately.

"I couldn't have done it without you." Meredith said with a giggle.

"You could've, but I am so happy you didn't. I don't know what I'd do without you." Derek said.

"Hmm, me neither. I love our family, Derek." She said looking up at him. In that moment Derek knew he had never loved Meredith Shepherd as much as he loved her now. In her eyes he could see the honesty and love shining through her emerald eyes.

"I love our family too," Derek said before capturing her lips into a deep, passionate kiss.

….

**Thank you for reading! Now, review please! (:**


	13. First Day of School

**I've promised you guys' an update and I haven't had time to write on out, but here I go. I decided to skip over Labor Day a bit, just because there's nothing too exciting to write about with that one.**

"Derek, wake up." Meredith whispered in Derek's ear as she turned in his arms and placed her head on his shoulder.

Derek made a soft sound and wrapped his arms around her tighter, making no move to actually wake up. Meredith moaned in frustration and nudged him a little before saying his name louder.

"Hmm…what?" he grumbled.

"Get up and get your son, he's whimpering in his room." Meredith told him.

"You get him then." He said.

"Derek, come on. I get up all the time with him, I'm tired and want to sleep." She told him.

"You have the boobs, Mer." He told her.

"Uh, you suck. I'm not having your children anymore since you don't help get up with them." She told him before pulling away from his side and getting out of bed. Before she could escape his reach, he pulled her arm and brought her down to his level. He placed three soft kisses on her lips before letting her go. "I'm serious, Derek." She said before leaving the room as Derek muttered, "Yeah, whatever," before turning back into his pillow and falling back to sleep.

Meredith walked into Michael's room and immediately smiled as she looked at her baby boy lying in his crib. "Good morning, my little prince." Meredith cooed as she walked to his crib and bent over to pick him up. She giggled as he looked up at her with a charming, gummy smile and felt her heart melt. She loved her little McDreamy junior.

She carried him to his changing table and quickly changed him so that the cold draft wouldn't cause him discomfort. She quickly fastened his pajamas and sat in his rocking chair before starting to feed him. She sat in the silence, looking down at her little boy and basked in the comfort of holding him. After feeding and burping him she rested back in the chair with him rested on her chest. She held him and rocked as she lulled them both back to sleep.

xxxxxxxx

Derek was still sleeping in Meredith's and his bed when he felt a little body plop down on his stomach. He heard the sweet little giggle of his daughter before she spoke. "Daddy! Wake up! Wake up! It's my first day of school today! Where's my mommy?" She rambled in excitement and she began to bounce up and down on top of her father's stomach, causing him to grunt in pain.

"Good morning, sweetheart. Please stop bouncing, you're hurting daddy." He told her as he opened his blue eyes and met her emerald green ones. More and more he noticed as she grew up that she was forming into a little Meredith. She always held her mother's features, but he couldn't get over how she was growing into such a beautiful little girl. "Are you ready for your first day of pre-school?" Derek asked her.

"Yeah! I got my Princess back pack all packed with my pencils, and paper and crayons and mommy made my lunch already! Where is mommy?" Grace asked her father.

"Michael woke mommy up, so she's with him. Do you have your outfit for school all picked out?" Derek asked her.

"Yeah, I got my pretty pink dress with lady bugs and butterflies all ready. Can I go get dressed in it?" Grace asked her father.

"Of course you can, and I'll get breakfast ready for you." He told her with a chuckle. She was so excited for her first day of school. She was really growing up.

She ran off with her tangled curls flying behind her, and Derek got up and made the bed before walking to Michael's bedroom to check on Meredith and him. She had woke him up about an hour ago, and he was starting to wonder where they were.

He opened the door and smiled at the scene before him. Meredith was sitting in the rocking chair with their beautiful little boy curled up on her chest. Their little boy had his head rested right above Meredith's heart as he snoozed and Meredith had her head resting back against the chair as she kept him wrapped tight in her arms. The sight was precious. Derek hated to wake them up, but he knew he had to.

"Mer, time to wake up." Derek said softly as he leaned over the chair and placed soft kisses along her cheeks and forehead, before placing one final kiss on her lips.

"What time is it?" Meredith mumbled when she finally woke up. She hadn't moved yet, but she opened her eyes to look up at her husband.

"It's seven, Gracie's up and getting ready for school." He told her.

Meredith fully woke up and looked down at the little bundle in her arms. He was two and a half months old now, but he still fit so well in her arms. He looked so cute curled up, with his fist curled up at his mouth, like he was trying to suck on it before he fell asleep.

"It's Gracie's first day of preschool." Meredith said with a sad look covering her features.

"It is. She's totally excited and ready to go. It's just preschool, Mer. She'll be fine, and we'll be fine." He told her as he kissed her again.

"They're growing up so fast, Derek. She's going off to school, and he's already getting bigger. I don't want them to grow up." Meredith said, looking up at him with soft tears in her eyes.

"Oh, Mer. They are growing up fast, but we knew this would happen. Gracie is ready for school and little Michael here is still our baby, he's only two months old. Plus, once we're ready again, we can have another baby." Derek told her, wiping away the two tears that fell onto her cheeks.

"I already told you, I'm not having any more of your chatty babies." Meredith said with a smile.

"Yeah, I heard you. Luckily, I know you were just kidding as well. You know I'll always take care of our kids, right? This morning, I was just tired and he wanted you, Mer. He was hungry." Derek told her.

"I know, I should've pumped before going to bed. That was my fault. Your turn tonight, though." Meredith told him.

"So, you'll have more of my babies in the future?" He asked her.

"Yeah, only because the two we have turned out perfect." Meredith told him with a smile.

"I love you, Meredith Shepherd." He told her, kissing her lightly.

"I love you too, Derek Shepherd." She answered, pulling him down to her level for a deeper kiss.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Mommy, I'm ready to go!" Grace said as she came running into the kitchen, while her mom finished cleaning up from breakfast.

"You are?" Meredith asked as she came down to her daughter's level.

"Yep, I gots my backpack, my lunch, my pencils and my Princess notebook." Grace said as she turned to model the backpack on her back for her mom.

"What about the supplies they asked you to bring in? Kleenex, and hand sanitizer?" Meredith asked.

"Daddy didn't put those in my bag." She answered. Confused as to where they were.

"Well, daddy's already slacking it seems." Meredith said softly before grabbing the supplies from the pantry.

"What about daddy?" Derek asked, as he carried Michael into the room already dressed for daycare.

"You forgot my classroom supplies, dad!" Gracie scolded.

"I'm sorry, Princess. Mommy got them for you, so now you have them. Are we ready to go?" Derek asked, looking more at Meredith than Grace.

"Yeah, I guess." Meredith said.

"Yeah! Let's go!" Gracie said excitedly.

They took a couple pictures of Grace decked out in her backpack, leaving the house and finally made their way to the car. Derek buckled up Michael and Grace before getting into the driver's seat and starting their trip to the city. He reached over and squeezed Meredith's hand before bringing it up to his mouth and placing a soothing kiss on the back. They shared a loving smile, before they finished the rest of the trip listening to their daughter sing along with the Taylor Swift CD in the car CD player.

Xxxxxx

"Ok, Gracie. Daddy and I have to go to work now, but we'll come get you at the end of the day to take you home. Have fun, and make some friends today, ok?" Meredith asked as she crouched down to Grace's level.

"Ok mommy, they're gonna like me though, right?" she asked her mom with matching green eyes looking up at her, fear and anticipation evident in them.

"Of course they will! You're a nice, funny, smart little girl. You'll make a lot of friends today, and you'll have fun playing and learning. Ok?" Meredith asked.

"Ok, and you'll come get me when it's over?" Gracie asked, showing more fear now then she had all morning.

"Yes. Daddy and I will come get you when your school day is over. It's going to be an amazing day, Gracie." Meredith said as she tried to hide her tears as she pulled her daughter in for a kiss.

Derek and Meredith had already taken a bunch of pictures of Gracie in her new classroom, near her cubby, and in front of the school. They got a variety, and it took Gracie to ask them to stop, before they finally did.

"Mer, we have to get going. Class is about to start and we have to take Michael to daycare still." Derek said softly.

"Ok," she said before wiping her eyes. "Gracie, mommy and daddy have to go now. But like I said, we'll be here at the end of the day to hear all about the fun stuff you did today. Alright?" she asked.

"Ok, mommy. I love you." Gracie said before kissing her mom and hugging her tight.

Meredith had to hold the tears as she embraced her daughter and then finally let her go as she went to say bye to Derek. Meredith took Michael from Derek's arms so he could hug Grace and waited for him to join her by the door.

When he finally joined her at the door ready to leave, he pulled her in close to him for a comforting hug. "It's ok, Mer. She's going to have a great day, and she's still our little girl." He told her.

"I know, it's just harder than I thought." She admitted.

"I know, but we really have to get going." He said.

"Right, we have to go to work." She said, brushing away her tears as she held Michael close to her. He was comforting her more than she realized.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

It was later that day when they returned to Gracie's preschool, ready to pick up their Princess and take her home.

They walked in the room and saw the group of kids all sitting on a circled rug, listening intently to their teacher as she finished her teaching for the day. "I'll see you tomorrow!" She finished before letting the kids go find their parents after collecting their supplies and backpacks.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Gracie cheered as she ran towards them. Meredith bent down and embraced Grace tightly in her arms, inhaling the scent of her daughter and running her hands through her hair.

"How was your day?" Meredith asked as she pulled back and looked at her daughter.

"It was fabulous! I met so many people! I made a friend, her name's Samantha. She's right there." Gracie said as she pointed to a little girl who was across the room with her parents as well. She had curly brown hair, and deep brown eyes. "She's super nice. She shared her markers with me when we had coloring time. I didn't want to use my crayons, so she was nice." Grace explained to her parents as she put her backpack on and began to walk ahead of them. She was so excited to tell them everything that happened.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Are they asleep?" Meredith asked, as Derek joined her in the bedroom.

"Yeah, Gracie tired herself out with school and Michael got tired after listening to his sister ramble about her first day." Derek said with a chuckle.

"She loves school," Meredith said.

"She does, that's a good thing. She'll love it more and more. Was it as bad as you thought it would be?" he asked, as he changed and joined her in bed.

"Yes, but seeing her so happy at the end of the day made up for it. I'm glad she made friends too." Meredith told her husband as she curled up with him, letting his arms wrap around her tightly.

"God, I love you." Derek said as he started to rub his hand up and down her arm.

"I love you too." Meredith answered before kissing him passionately.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**There we go! Grace's first day of school! I'm not sure when I'll update again, maybe Halloween. It's my senior year at high school, and I work so I'm just trying to get that stuff done first. I'll try to update by Halloween. Thanks for reading, and hopefully you'll take a minute to review! (: **


	14. Halloween II

**Hey all! I hope you guys have been having a wonderful life and I have enjoyed reading all your reviews. You guys are amazing for sticking around and reading this story even though I don't update on a regular bases. Here's a cute little Halloween update! I can't believe I started this story a year ago! Thanks for reading and don't forget to review at the end!**

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It had been about a month and a half since Gracie started school and so far she loved every minute of it. She had such a positive outlook on school and wanted to keep going back. The first day, she had been a little afraid to make new friends, but afterwards she found out that she loved school and she loved meeting new friends. Meredith adjusted well to letting Gracie go to school, but it was still hard for her to believe that her little girl was going to school now.

Her other little baby, Michael, was four months old now and she couldn't believe that the last four months went by as fast as they did. It seemed like just yesterday she was in labor and cursing at Derek for knocking her up again. Now, her son was four months old and started to make cute little sounds and be more alert to things going on in their life.

Derek woke up and unconsciously pulled Meredith closer, even though when they slept they were as close as possible at all times. He could never complain about his life. When he was at work and heard some of the other doctors in his area complaining about how their wives nagged them, denied them sex, and how their children seemed to be little hellions, Derek found himself tuning them out and rolling his eyes. He couldn't complain about anything in his life. Meredith was amazing. She was the best wife he could ever imagine having and she hardly ever nagged him about anything. They shared their duties in the house evenly, and it worked out for their household. And denying him sex? Never. They still had an extremely healthy sex life even with two kids; honestly, he was surprised there weren't more little Shepherd's running around the house.

That was another thing, his kids. He could never complain them. They weren't always little angels, he'd never call them that, but to him they were as perfect as could be. Sure, Gracie gave attitude at times, but they were working on her with that, and sometimes Michael threw little fits or decided to cry at the worst times, but he loved them and they were his pride and joy. His life was amazing.

He leaned over Meredith and placed a tender kiss on her cheek. He loved the woman in his arms more than anything. "Why are you staring at me?" he heard his wife ask as he snapped back into reality.

"Sorry, you're just beautiful." He told her with a dreamy smile as he leaned down and captured her lips with his. "I love the moments in the morning when you're still sleeping and I just look over at you and see you sleeping peacefully. I love it, and I love you." He told her.

"What's wrong with you?" Meredith asked, turning her body over and looking up at him.

"Nothing, Meredith. I can't tell my wife how beautiful and in love I am with her?" he asked with a smile.

"Not unless you want something or did something." Meredith said.

"Well, none of those are the case this morning. I just love you." He told her, leaning down to seal his confession with a sweet kiss.

"Well then, I accept and I love you too." She said, raising up to place another kiss on his lips. "What time do you go into work?" she asked.

"I have a surgery at seven thirty. I'm going to take Grace to school then go in to work. How about you?" he asked.

"I don't have to be in till eight, then I'm leaving early to go over to Gracie's school to help with the class Halloween party." Meredith said.

"Oh, right. I forgot you signed up to help with that." Derek said with a chuckle.

"Why are you laughing? Do you think I can't handle that or that it's not a good idea for me to go in and help with fifteen pre-schoolers?" she asked him.

"No, Mer, I don't think that. You're perfect for the job. You're amazing with our kids, and Grace will love having her mommy there to help and show you off." Derek said.

"Good answer." Meredith said with a giggle. "So, I'll take Michael in to day care, then you can get him after your shift, sound good?" she asked.

"Yeah, I should be off by four. Why don't you come get him after the party?" Derek asked.

"Because, I want to spend time with Grace. I'm thinking of taking her to get ice-cream or shopping for some extra stuff to go with her princess costume. Last year she was Cinderella, this year she's Tinkerbelle. That girl loves her princesses and she needs some sparkles and hair accessories. I want to spend some time just her and I, since Michael's birth we've had to share our attention with both, today for about an hour I want to be able to spend all my attention on her." Meredith explained.

"Sounds like a good idea. She loves spending time with you, Mer. She'll love shopping and eating ice-cream with you. I'll get our little man and we'll pick dinner up for our girls and come home. He's going to make a cute Peter Pan this Sunday." Derek said with a chuckle.

"They're both going to look so cute in their costumes. Peter Pan and Tinkerbelle." Meredith giggled.

"Ba ba ga ga," they heard over the monitor and they shared a cheesy smile. Their little Peter Pan was awake and blabbering away in his room.

Derek got up and went to Michael's room and quickly changed his diaper as Michael babbled away to his dad. Derek mmhmm'd and really'd as he listened to whatever it was that his son was trying to tell him.

They walked into the master bedroom and Derek returned to his spot in the bed and placed Michael in between himself and Meredith. Michael looked up realizing he was in a new room and set eyes on his mother. "Ma!" he cheered as he clapped excitedly wanting attention from her.

"What did you just say?" Meredith asked shocked, and shared a surprised expression with Derek. Michael had been babbling for over a week now and saying random things that didn't connect to anything or anyone. Meredith and Derek had been trying desperately to turn those pointless babbles to either 'Ma ma' or 'Da da' and kept getting random things from their son, up until now that is.

"Of course, he says ma ma before da da." Derek mumbled.

"My baby boy! You said mama. Can you say it again? Who am I?" Meredith asked as she scooped her son into her arms.

"Mama!" Michael answered clapping and smiling at his mom.

"Oh, you precious little boy. Mommy loves you." Meredith said, embracing him in a hug as tears stung her eyes.

"Mer, are you ok?" Derek asked.

"Yeah, these are happy tears. He's growing up and saying mama now. I love it." Meredith said.

"They always say your name first." Derek said.

"Not true, Grace said Mama then right after said Dada. She combined them. He just loves me more than you." Meredith teased.

"That's because you have the boobs to feed him." Derek grumbled.

"Oh, hush. I carried him for nine months and was in labor with him forever it seemed, so he should say my name first." Meredith said, letting Michael stand on her stomach as she held his arms for his balance.

"Come here bud, let's get you to say Dada." Derek said, grabbing his son and holding him in front of him. "Dada, dada…dada." Derek repeated.

"Mama, mama, mama…Mama!" Michael said looking back at his mom with a happy smile.

"Uh, worth a try." Derek said, passing their son back to Meredith as he repeatedly chanted mama. He loved his new word. He had to admit, this was a big milestone in his wonderful son's life. He was growing and Meredith did deserve to have him say her name first, she went through a lot with their son.

"He'll say dada next, you just have to wait." Meredith said, playing with their son now and making him giggle as she tickled him.

"I'm going to go get our daughter, at least she likes me." Derek said as he left the room.

"My little man, although your mommy is very proud of you saying her name as your first word, you have to say daddy's next, or else you're going to make him sad. So, now that you've got mama down, you need to start saying dada. Dada, dada, dada…" Meredith chanted. Over exaggerating her facial expressions for him to watch her form the syllables with her mouth.

"Mama, mama, mama," he responded.

"Worth a try, we'll keep working on it." Meredith said, pulling him close to her chest and smiling as he plopped down on his stomach on top of her chest and cuddling into her body. She embraced him and held him close to her as she peppered soft kisses to his dark, curly, McDreamy-like hair. She loved the little man in her arms, and she loved the big version who gave her the beautiful children. She loved her life.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Mommy!" Gracie cheered as she ran towards her mother as Meredith entered Grace's classroom. The kids were starting to get ready and get in their costumes, but Grace waited till Meredith got there so her mom could help her.

"Hey baby girl, how's school been?" Meredith asked as she crouched down and embraced her replica in her arms.

"Great! But Mrs. Weller says we can't have candy until the party starts and we play games." Gracie told her mom.

"That's right. How about we go get dressed in your costume so we can start playing games?" Meredith asked.

"Yay!" Gracie cheered as she followed Meredith into the school's bathroom to start dressing in her costume.

After all the kids changed into their costumes and filed back into the classroom, the kids sat down at the little tables and waited for their teacher to give instructions. Meredith stood behind Grace's chair and smiled with pride that her daughter was sitting quietly while some of the other kids disobeyed and continued to chit-chat. A little girl next to Grace tried talking to her, but Gracie just ignored her and continued to focus on her teacher. Once the kids started to quiet down, the teacher explain what would happen at the party and it began.

Meredith started helping Grace decorate cookies, and color pictures of pumpkins and giggled with her daughter before helping the teacher and other parents get the snack together for the kids. Grace looked so happy at school, and Meredith was thrilled that she adapted and listened well at school.

"Did you have fun at your party?" Meredith asked, as she navigated the car around Seattle as she arrived at Target to get some last minute things Grace would need for Halloween night.

"Yeah! My favorite part was decorating the pumpkins, and eating pumpkin seeds." Gracie told her.

"That was fun," Meredith said, as she helped her daughter out of the car and held her hand as they walked into the store. She got a cart and lifted Grace into it before setting out for the costume area.

"When are we getting Michael?" Gracie asked her mom as she looked up at Meredith.

"We're not. Daddy's bringing him home after getting out of work and they're going to pick up our dinner." Meredith told her as she put random items they needed at home into the cart.

"So, we get to have a mommy day?" Gracie asked.

"For a little bit. We're going to do some shopping then maybe if you're good we're going to get ice-cream. How does that sound?" Meredith asked.

"Awesome! Ice cream before dinner?" Grace asked her mom, amazed that she could possibly get dessert before having to eat all her vegetables.

"Maybe, you have to be a good girl. You can't ask for everything you see, ok?"

"Ok, mommy." Gracie said as they began shopping and Gracie told her mom random stories of the day and things in her life.

"Mommy, what's divorced?" Grace asked, looking up at her mom with her innocent eyes.

"Uh, what?" Meredith asked, not prepared for that big question to come from her four year old daughter. "Where did you hear that word?"

"Tommy in class. He said that he has two different take home folders because he lives with his mommy one week and his daddy the next week. I asked him why he does that, and why he doesn't live with both of them all the time because I live with you and daddy both all the time. He told me his mommy and daddy don't live together because they're divorced. Mommy, what does that mean?" Gracie asked.

"Well, sweetie." Meredith said, searching through her brain to find an easy way to answer this for her four year old daughter. She was Grace's age when her father left and her parents got a divorce, and she never completely understood the concept. She needed to break it down for her so she could understand it. "Well, you know how mommy and daddy are married?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah, daddy wears a ring and you wear a prettier one with a big diamond on your finger." Gracie explained.

"Right, because daddy and I love each other. We love each other and decided to put rings on each other's fingers and get married because we love each other and we wanted to have you and Michael." She explained.

"Divorced is when the mommy and daddy get married and sometimes they have kids, but then sometimes they fall out of love. And even though it's sad, when they fall out of love they get divorced so then they're no longer married. Then, they don't live together and sometimes if they had kids then the kids spend time with their parents but at different times and different houses." Meredith tried her best to explain. It was so hard to think of a way she would understand it. She never wanted this conversation to come up, because she never had plans to because she never wanted to get divorced from Derek. But, she never thought that a kid in her class would have divorced parents and want to know the meaning behind it.

"Oh, ok. So, are you and daddy going to get divorced?" Grace asked.

"No, mommy and daddy love each other very much so we won't get divorced." Meredith told her.

"What if you guys' fall out of love?" Grace asked.

"Gracie, you don't have to worry about this stuff. You're four, let's go get your makeup for your costume then go get ice cream." Meredith said, hopefully finding a new distraction for Grace to focus on.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Later that evening the Shepherd's sat around their dining room table enjoying dinner as Grace shared with her father the eventful activities they participated in at her Halloween party. Meredith listened, but sat in silence as she tried to feed Michael a little bit of a banana. She was still feeding him breast milk, but they had also tried to start feeding him some solid foods.

The talk with Grace about divorce really bothered her. Her sweet, innocent daughter shouldn't have asked that question. She didn't want her worrying about divorce or her parents breaking up. Gracie should be worried about Halloween, and excited to be a little kid.

She felt tears start to form in her eyes and tried her best to hide them. Gracie was still looking at Derek and talking animatedly, but she could feel Derek's eyes on her. She wiped the tears from her eyes and looked up, making eye contact with her husband. In his eyes reflected concern and worry along with confusion. She shook her head as if to tell him it was nothing, then stood up and pulled Michael into her arms. "I'm going to go clean him up, then put him to bed." Meredith said as she moved out of the room.

Later, after Derek had cleaned up after dinner and gotten Grace changed into her pajamas he walked into Michael's room. Meredith was finishing buttoning up his onesie when Michael looked up at his father. "Dada!" he cheered, smiling happily at the new person in his room.

"Michael! You just made your daddy very happy," Meredith said, handing their son off to Derek.

Derek looked at Michael in awe. His son just said Dada and he couldn't be happier. "Thanks bud, that makes me so happy and proud of you." He said, then chuckled as he felt his son's chubby hands cup his cheeks and slap him. "Don't hurt me." Derek said, with a fake pout.

"Dada," Michael continued to chant with a gummy smile, then feeling the tiredness of the day, he rested his head down on Derek's shoulder.

"Are you ready for bed, bud?" Derek asked, rubbing his hand up and down his son's back. Michael answered with a tired yawn and Derek chuckled before sitting in the rocking chair to get him to sleep.

"Well, since you've got him I'm going to get Grace into bed." Meredith said, moving out of the room and down the hall to her daughter's room.

"Gracie, it's time to go to bed. You brushed your teeth, right?" Meredith asked as she saw her daughter looking at one of her favorite books.

"Yeah, because I ate a lot of candy at the party today." Gracie said, which clearly Derek had already told her a couple times that was the reason why she needed to make sure she brushed her teeth, because if not, Gracie would not have said that.

"That's right, now it's time for you to get in bed and fall asleep." Meredith said as she helped her daughter into the bed and tucked the blankets around her.

"I love you, Gracie." Meredith said softly as she sat next to her and ran her hands through her daughter's curls.

"I love you too, Mommy. I'm glad you and daddy are married and not divorced." Gracie said sweetly. Meredith felt the tears come to her eyes once again, before brushing a soft kiss to her daughter's forehead. "Me too, baby, but you don't have to worry about that, ok?" Meredith asked.

"Ok, goodnight mommy." Grace said, feeling the fatigue of the day come over her and cause her to shut her eyes.

"Goodnight Grace," Meredith said, going to the door and shutting it behind her.

She moved down the hall into her room and moved to her dresser before undressing. Derek came in and moved to her and wrapped her in his arms feeling her bare skin against him. She tried to get out of his arms and change but he held her tighter.

"Meredith, what's wrong? You've been acting strange ever since you got home with Grace. She had fun at her party, and she loved spending time with you today, so what's wrong?" Derek asked.

"Nothing Derek, just for once can you drop it? I'm just in a mood or whatever." She told him.

"I know you're in a mood, I'm trying to understand why. I know something is bothering you, and I'm not going to drop it." Derek told her, his eye brows together in confusion.

"Well, I want you to leave me alone, just for a little bit." Meredith said. She didn't use an angry or hostile tone, just a tired and upset tone. She moved out of his arms, and he let her, and she moved back to the dresser and pulled out her pajamas. She changed into one of his old t-shirts and into a pair of her favorite sweatpants.

Derek did the same as he changed, but he still kept his gaze on her to hopefully study her more. When he saw her move over to their bed and pull the blankets down on her side, she crawled in and he decided to do the same. "Are you going to tell me what's wrong now?" he asked softly, desperately wanting to pull her into his arms, but knowing she wouldn't let him.

"I had to explain to our four year old daughter what divorce was and why people got divorced." Meredith said, tears springing back into her eyes.

"Oh, Mer." Derek sighed, moving closer to her.

"I was so surprised that she asked me that. Apparently a little boy in her class has parents who are divorced and he told her that he spends time at two different houses and she was so confused why he had two houses and why he didn't live with both of his parents. It was so hard to explain to her why those things happened and why they happened to his parents. Then she kept asking if we were going to get divorced and it was just…tough. Because that was me. I was her age when my dad left and my parents got divorced, and Derek, it could happen. Anything could happen. One day, you could wake up and decide you're not happy with this life anymore, that you don't want to be here, and you could leave and we'd be divorced. You'd still see the kids, but we'd be divorced and that just scares the shit out of me. Because I don't want to be my parents, and I don't want our kids to have to go through what I went through." Meredith said, ending in a sob.

"Oh, Mer, that will never happen. I thought you knew that. I thought you knew that when I married you and promised you forever I meant it all. I'm in this all the way, forever. I could never fall out of love with you. You're everything to me. I fall more and more in love with you every minute and I still have plans for us to die at a hundred and ten in each other's arms. That's not changing. We're in this forever, Mer. I could never leave you and I would never leave our children. We're not your parents, if anything, we're my parents. I love you, forever. I'm sorry Gracie asked you that today, and I wish I had been there with you so then you wouldn't have had to answer that alone. But, by the sounds of it you did an amazing job and she didn't have any questions for me. She was just curious as to why a kid in her class had two homes. But Mer, our kids are never going to have to experience that. I love you, you're the love of my life and that's never going to change. Ok?" Derek asked. By this time, Meredith was in his arms and he kissed her.

"Ok, I believe you. Sorry for acting so weird, I just…I never expected her to ask me that, and when I looked down at her I saw myself at her age and I just, I held it together in front of her but once I got home I couldn't anymore. I never want her to have to go through what I did." Meredith said.

"She won't. You're such an amazing mother, Meredith. You are great with her and Michael. Today Michael said his first word and it was Mama, he's clearly a mommy's boy and he adores you. And Gracie, she looks up to you so much and loved spending time with you at the party. She told me all about it, Mer, and you were in each of her stories. She also loved her time just spent with you at the store. She loves you and she's going to grow up worshiping the ground you walk on. You're such an amazing mother, Mer, so much better than your mom and I am so damn lucky to have as the mother to my children. There isn't anyone else I'd rather have." Derek said.

"Thank you, Derek. You're an amazing father and an amazing husband. I couldn't ask for anyone better either. I'm sorry I kind of froze you out, I just needed to think things through." Meredith said.

"He said his first two words today," Derek said after some time passed.

"He did, the two most important words too." Meredith answered.

"I love you, Mer." Derek said, once again.

"I love you too, so much." Meredith answered.

Derek leaned down and kissed Meredith, thrilled that he found a way to eliminate her weird mood, and made love to the woman that made his life complete and was an amazing wife and mother. He loved life, and had nothing to complain about.

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**There we go! So, I volunteer at an elementary school where I live after school, and a little boy in the first grade class has divorced parents, and that just made me sad. Somehow I got thinking about what would happen if Grace asked her parents what that meant and to hear their answer. I didn't plan for her to ask Meredith at first, I just winged it, but the way it turned out I like because Meredith had to experience that when she was younger. I hope you guys' enjoyed it and I hope you have a fabulous Halloween (If you celebrate it). **

**Melissa**


	15. No Shave November

**Hey guys! Hope you had a great Halloween if you celebrate it! Here's an update for Thanksgiving. Or at least fall. I'm not sure if there's going to be another update for Thanksgiving. Nothing has really inspired me to write a certain chapter for this one, so I'm not sure if it will count as the Thanksgiving one. Here we go!**

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Derek woke on a cool fall morning and looked at the clock. It was seven in the morning and he knew his daughter and son would soon be awakening him and his wife to start the day. He had to go into the hospital at nine, but he hoped to be able to spend some time with his family before he left. That included some special alone time with his wife as well, without the children.

He turned on his side and started to place kisses on Meredith's forehead, cheek, and then nuzzled her neck. He continued to kiss, nip and nuzzle her neck until he got some sort of reaction from her.

"Derek, stop it. You're all scratchy." Meredith said, pushing his face away.

"I'm trying to kiss you, and make love to you." Derek said with a pout.

"Not with that fur on your face. Seriously, when was the last time you shaved?" she asked him, looking at him as her eyes adjusted to being awake.

"It's no-shave-November." Derek answered, as if that would clear everything up for Meredith.

"What?" she asked with a giggle.

"No-shave-November." He said again.

"Which means what?" she asked.

"It means you don't shave for the whole month of November." Derek answered, and then brought his hand up to feel the hair growing on his chin.

"Derek, you are not doing that. Go shave." Meredith said, pushing him off of her.

"What? No. I don't want to." Derek said.

"Then you don't get to kiss me or get sex from me for a whole month. Are you sure you don't want to shave?" she asked.

"Mer, come on. It's not that big of a deal." He said.

"Maybe to you, but you're not the one kissing a brilo pad." She said.

"You're being dramatic. Now can we please have sex before the kids wake up? I have to spend the day at the hospital." He said.

"Not until you shave." She said, pushing off of the bed.

"Well that's not going to happen. Mark and I are doing this for the month of November." He said, standing up as well and crossing his arms across his chest.

"Oh, I should've known that Mark was involved. Is Lexie giving him sex during this month?" she asked.

"Probably. She's probably being a good wife." Derek said.

"Really? So since Lexie's such a great wife why don't you go live with her and get sex from her." Meredith said before leaving the room.

Damn. Derek dug himself a hole, again. They hadn't had a fight in a while. He knew he always caused them by being stupid, and this would definitely be the stupidest fight they'd had. He didn't know why he was being so persistent about this shaving thing. It was completely stupid and some random thing that Mark had told him about. He knew it wouldn't last long. Meredith could stand his five o' clock shadow, and sometimes she could stand it when he went a few days without shaving, but he knew she wouldn't be able to deal with a whole months worth.

He'd also stupidly mentioned that Mark was participating in the stupid no shaving thing, and that Lexie was fine with it. He knew in the past that Meredith had a hard time connecting to Lexie because she was the better Grey sister and she didn't want to be compared to Lexie. And that's exactly what he did. He loved his wife and he would never want another woman to be his wife or mother to his children, and he knew he shouldn't have even mentioned Lexie being ok with Mark not shaving.

He let out a deep sigh and made his way out of the bedroom and went to look for his wife. He knew she wouldn't be getting the kids out of bed, because she knew not to wake them. He found her in the kitchen making herself a mug of coffee. "Mer." He said softly.

She didn't react. She didn't respond and her body didn't move an inch by the sound of his voice. "Mer, please, I'm sorry." He said.

"Whatever Derek, just get ready for work and I'll get the kids. Have fun at work with Mark and Lexie and your stupid beard." Meredith said, leaving the room with her mug.

"Meredith, can we please just talk about this?" Derek asked as he followed her. "This is stupid."

"You're right, this is stupid. But you caused this. You took the stupid topic of not shaving and turned it to a much more sensitive level. You of all people know what it's been like for me to accept her and get close to her. So, for you to bring up that she's being a better wife doesn't help those insecurities go away. If you don't want to shave, then fine. Since we won't be having sex, that means I won't have to shave my legs either." She said, and then she stormed out of the room.

Derek let out a defeated sigh and went back upstairs to take a shower. He looked at the shaving cream and razor as he stepped out of the shower, and questioned if he should shave. He opted not to since it seemed Meredith was already mad and that wouldn't change anything. He was such an idiot for allowing this fight to happen. Why didn't he just agree to shave when she asked?

He dressed and returned downstairs to see his family all gathered at the table eating cereal. He would've made breakfast for them, but it seemed Meredith didn't want to wait for him. "I would've made breakfast." He said as he entered the room fully.

"Daddy!" Gracie cheered as she set eyes on her dad.

"Good morning baby girl," Derek said before he placed a kiss on her cheek.

"Ouch daddy," she said moving away from his kiss.

"What?" Derek asked confused.

"Your kisses hurt." She answered.

"Sorry princess," he said with a sigh. It seemed both Shepherd women in the house were unhappy with his beard.

"It's no-shave-November, Gracie, doesn't that make up for it?" Meredith asked in a mocking voice.

"No," Gracie answered shaking her head from side to side.

Derek moved over to Michael and picked him up from his bouncy seat. He was starting to be able to sit up, but when they ate he normally played in his bouncy chair. "You like my beard don't you buddy?" Derek asked before kissing his son's forehead. Michael stared at his father before placing his little hands on Derek's beard before letting out a giggle.

"Knew it. Us Shepherd men have to stick together, isn't that right bud?" Derek asked with a chuckle.

Michael let out another giggle and Derek placed a final kiss on his forehead before returning him to his bouncy chair, then grabbed a few toys for Michael to play with.

Derek walked over to the cabinet and grabbed his box of muesli before sitting down at the table across from Meredith. He tried to make eye contact with her, but she wouldn't look at him. She was focused on her own cereal as Katie sang little songs to herself and Michael babbled.

"I really would've made breakfast, Mer." He said, trying to make an effort and get back on his wife's good side before leaving for work. The last thing he wanted was to go to work and have his wife still mad at him.

"It's fine, Derek. We didn't want to wait and you were still in the shower." She told him.

"Mer, can we please get over this before I go to work?" he asked.

"We're fine, Derek." She answered.

"No, we're not." He said.

"Well, I'm fine. If you're not, then that's not my fault." She said before standing up and taking care of her dishes.

"Meredith, I am sorry. I shouldn't have mentioned Lexie and Mark. You're an amazing wife and I would never trade you for Lexie." He said as he moved closer to her and the sink as he put his own bowl in there next to hers.

"Ok. You know that it's more than just that though. And if you were really sorry, you wouldn't still have a beard." She said, turning to look at him.

"Meredith, please. I don't want to go to work with you still mad at me. Is this really just about shaving? Because if it is, I'll go up stairs and shave." He said.

"No Derek, this isn't just about shaving. I don't care if you have hair all over your face. You honestly think I would pick a fight over that? Yes, I hate that you have a beard and I hate when you kiss me because it hurts. But I wouldn't pick a fight and keep it going if it were just about you shaving." She said.

"Then what is it about?" he asked confused.

"Seriously? You don't know why I'm mad?" She asked.

"No, I don't. Can you please just tell me?" he asked.

"You're such an idiot." She said before returning to her seat, making it evident to Derek that she wasn't about to enlighten him on why she was still upset.

"Fine, don't tell me. I'm not going to keep apologizing when you won't tell me." Derek snapped.

"Gracie, why don't you go to the play room and watch a movie." Meredith said as she moved towards Michael. Once he noticed his mother standing in front of him his arms reached out to be held. Meredith smiled softly at him before pulling him into her arms and placing a soft kiss on his head.

"Come on my little man, you're going to go hang out with your big sister for a little bit." Meredith said as she moved into the other room and placed him in his play pen.

"Grace, your brother is going to be in his play pen while you watch your movie. Come get me if he starts to cry or something is wrong with him, ok?" she asked.

"Kay mommy." She said, focusing on her movie.

Meredith moved back to the kitchen and started cleaning up the breakfast mess Gracie had made. Derek stood by the island with his arms folded over his chest. He was irritated with his wife, and Meredith knew it.

"Meredith," Derek said in a soft whisper.

"No, you snapped at me in front of the kids, Derek. That's not ok. I watched my parents fight in front of me anytime my mother was actually home. My kids are not going to go through that. If you're pissed at me, that's fine. But don't fight with me in front of the kids." She said.

"You were arguing with me in front of them too, Meredith, and you called me an idiot in front of them." He said in his defense.

"No, I argued with you over by the sink in hushed tones where they couldn't hear or understand what we were saying." Meredith argued.

"Whatever Meredith, are we going to talk about this or not?" he asked annoyed.

"I don't really care at the moment, Derek. You hurt me earlier and you don't even know how, and you just want me to accept your pointless apology so you can go to work and not have to worry about what you're going to come home to, and I'm not just going to accept it without you knowing why I'm pissed at you. I'm also not going to tell you why I'm pissed. You should know why. I just…I don't even want to talk to you anymore about this. Just go to work." Meredith said.

"Damn it, Meredith! Are you really this upset about me saying one comment about Lexie? When are you going to stop feeling insecure about her?" Derek said in a harsh tone.

"Leave, Derek. Now." Meredith said, trying to push her tears away and get past the lump in her throat.

"Fine, Meredith. Let's run from our problems." Derek said, letting out a frustrated sigh as he raked his hands through his hair.

"Feel free to stay the night at the hospital, or maybe Lexie will let you crash at their place tonight. If you do come home tonight, don't bother coming to our room, you can sleep on the couch." Meredith said, brushing a lone tear away from her cheek before leaving the room.

She went to sit with the kids in the play room and sat on the small love seat they put in there. Gracie was seated in front of the T.V. wanting to be close to the movie, and Michael was still happy playing with toys in the play pen. Meredith sat on the love seat and pretended to be reading a medical journal when Derek came in the room.

"Bye Katie bug," Derek said, leaning down to place a kiss on her forehead.

"No daddy, you stay." Gracie cried, not wanting her dad to leave.

"Sorry Princess, daddy has to go to work for a little bit. I'll see you tomorrow morning if I'm not home when you go to bed." Derek said, kissing her again.

"I don't want you to go," she whined.

"I'm sorry Gracie, but daddy has to go save lives and you're going to have a great day with mommy and Michael." Derek said.

"Fine." Gracie said in huff, crossing her arms across his chest. Great, now both of the Shepherd women were mad at him.

"I love you, princess. Be a good girl for mommy." Derek said, kissing her again.

"Bye, daddy. Love you too." She said, wrapping her arms around her dad and giving him a big hug. The hug surprised Derek and he felt tears form in his eyes. He hated leaving his family during the weekend, and normally Grace was ok with it if a parent was staying home with her, but today she wasn't happy. Also, the fight with Meredith made him need the hug even more.

Derek let Gracie go and return back to her movie before he moved to the play pen and picked Michael up. "Bye bud, be good today. I love you." Derek said, and then kissed his son on the forehead before placing him back in the pen.

Derek stood and looked at Meredith. He hated this. He wanted to apologize again, but he was still unsure what he did wrong, and apparently she didn't want to hear another apology.

"Bye Mer," were his last words as he left the room, then shortly after left the house.

Meredith tried to hold the tears back, but they came flooding down her cheek. They never had this big of a fight, and this started from the stupidest thing she had ever heard of. All because he wouldn't shave, but this was so much more than that. Honestly, it didn't have anything to do with shaving. She could care less about his facial hair at this moment. The comment he made about Lexie brought back more insecurity than she realized. She was close to Lexie now, they had gotten over the 'better Grey sister' stuff and really formed a relationship, and Meredith really didn't think she felt insecure about anything from her past anymore, but apparently she did.

The moment he mentioned Lexie being a good wife, made Meredith feel like she had to compete against her sister all over again. The comparison to Lexie as a wife was something she never thought would come out of Derek's mouth. She thought he was happy to have her as a wife and happy with their relationship, but maybe she had been wrong. Also, unlike any other time they had argued, he snapped at her. Normally, if they disagreed on something or had an argument they would talk it out. Meredith had gotten better at it since they got married and they made sure to always resolve what was wrong before the day was over or before it could get out of control. This was so much worse than all the other times.

She had no idea how they were going to fix this. He didn't even say he loved her when he left, and she didn't know if he would come home that night or not.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Derek was in his office at the end of his shift. He could go home at any time, but he really didn't know if he was welcomed there anymore. He had no idea where his marriage stood anymore. He felt a knot in his stomach anytime he thought of the condition things were in when he left that morning. The thought of divorce made a lump form in his throat and tears spring to his eyes. His marriage couldn't end. Not over this. He loved his wife, more than anything in the world. She was the love of his life, and he had to fix this, he just didn't know how.

"Dude, what the hell is wrong with you? You look like shit." Mark said as he entered his friends office without knocking.

"Meredith and I had a fight this morning. One that shouldn't have happened, but because of you it did." Derek said with a frustrated sigh.

"Me? How is this my fault?" Mark asked.

"Your stupid no-shave-November." Derek answered.

"What about it? You're growing a good beard." Mark said with a smile.

"Well, I haven't been shaving and Meredith got all pissed off and told me to shave and I refused and said you were doing it as well. She then asked if Lexie was ok with you not shaving and I said she probably was considering she was a good wife." Derek said.

"Oh, Derek. You're such an idiot." Mark laughed.

"This isn't funny, Mark. What I said really hurt her, but I have no how it caused a big blow up but it did. And now, I don't even know if I'm allowed to go home or if my marriage is still intact." Derek said, running a hand through his hair.

"It is. Derek, you brought back Meredith's insecurities about marriage and being a good wife by comparing her to her sister. You know Meredith has had difficulties with accepting Lexie. For years she thought Lexie was the better Grey sister, and you basically told her that Lexie was a better wife." Mark said.

"I did not." Derek snapped. "Meredith is the best wife. I couldn't ask for or want another woman as my wife."

"Well, that's not how Meredith took it. You saying that to her, made her feel like a bad wife and it brought back her insecurities." Mark said.

"Damn it, you're right. I guess I just forget about them sometimes. We haven't had to deal with her past and the dark and twistiness in awhile. I guess I just thought she was past all of that." Derek said, realizing Mark was actually right.

"She is, but not when you say stupid stuff that brings them back." Mark said.

"How do you know my wife better than I do?" Derek asked.

"Because, she told Lexie and Lexie told me. I decided to find your sorry ass and inform you so you could get it through your thick skull and go home to your wife and fix things." Mark said.

"Thanks," Derek said with a soft chuckle. He screwed up big time. And it was time to go home and fix things with his wife.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The kids were in bed and Meredith was lying in her bed trying to sleep. The day had been horrible and she just wanted to sleep. But instead of being able to sleep, she was up thinking about her fight with Derek. She may have over reacted, in fact she knew she did, but the dark and twisty thoughts couldn't help but creep into her brain.

She heard Derek come in the house about fifteen minutes ago, and she was currently listening to him over the baby monitor as he told Michael goodnight. She then heard his footsteps come down the hallway before he opened the door and stepped in.

"Mer, are you awake?" He asked. He knew she was, he knew her better than she knew herself.

"Yeah," there was no reason for her to lie.

"Should I go sleep on the couch?" Derek asked as he stood by her bedside. She sat up and turned her end table light on.

"No, I think we should talk." She said.

"Oh, thank god. Me too." Derek said with a sigh as he sat down on her side of the bed. "Mer, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to say what I did about Lexie. I didn't mean to bring back any insecurities. I love you, and I am so happy you are my wife. I never should've said what I did, and I definitely shouldn't have snapped at you in front of the kids. I'm so sorry." Derek said, looking at Meredith with adoration in his eyes.

"I'm sorry too. I was being over dramatic and dumb. I shouldn't have acted that way. I just…I guess I didn't realize I still had some dark and twistiness inside, but I guess I do." She admitted.

"It's ok. I love the dark and twisty. But, we really need to make sure this never happens again. I couldn't stand not knowing what stage our relationship was in anymore. I just…the thought of losing you is unbearable. I never want to live without you." Derek said.

"So, you don't think Lexie's a better wife than me?" she asked.

"Of course not, I love you. Only you. And you are the best wife I could ever ask for. You're loving and caring and you're such an amazing mother to our children." Derek said, cupping Meredith's face in his hands.

"I love you too, I'm sorry for reacting the way I did." Meredith apologized again. "It's just been a crazy day with a stupid fight." Meredith said.

"It has. I just…I never want you to think that I don't love our life, or love you as my wife. Because I do, so much." Derek said.

"I know you do. And I love you so much. Let's just…forget about this whole day." Meredith said.

"Done." Derek said with a chuckle, before leaning in and kissing his wife. He wanted to turn the kiss passionate but Meredith pulled away.

"You shaved." Meredith said with a big smile and giggle as she raised her hands to Derek's cheeks and felt the smoothness of his skin. No more facial hair.

"I shaved." Derek said with a smile. He took the time to do that before coming home from the hospital.

"I'm glad." Meredith said. "No-shave-November is stupid."

"It is. I'll never do it again." Derek said.

"Some scratchiness is ok, but not a lot. Katie didn't like it either." Meredith said with a giggle.

"I know, I'll promise to shave for my Shepherd girls." Derek said before kissing his wife again.

"Make up sex," Meredith said.

"Make up sex," Derek agreed, passionately kissing Meredith and pushing her into their soft mattress as he started to undress her.

"Wait, Derek." Meredith said, placing her hand on his chest.

"What?" He asked.

"I didn't shave. I was too pissed at you," Meredith said.

"I don't care," Derek said, returning to making love to his wife.

This was the way he wanted his life to be. He loved his wife, and he wouldn't trade her for any other woman in the world. She was the woman he wanted by her side until the day he died.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**Ok, this chapter sucked. I apologize for that, but like I said before I really didn't have any inspiration for this chapter. I do have good news to make up for the horrible chapter, I am starting another story. I'm writing some chapters now and planning it all out and then I'll start to post it. Please review, but I'll understand if you don't. **


	16. Thanksgiving II

**Thanks for the reviews. I'm glad you guys liked it more than I thought you would. I honestly didn't like it, but I'm glad you guys didn't think it was horrible. I'm also sorry that I used Katie's name instead of Grace's. I've been reading a story with a little girl named Katie in it, and also I was incredibaly tired while writing it. Thank you for pointing that out to me. I'm sorry for that mistake, I felt so stupid after you guys' told me. Lol! Anyway, I decided to write a nice chapter for Thanksgiving. I hope those who celebrate it enjoy the day with your families and eat lots of food! (:**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

It was Thanksgiving. Those were the first thoughts that entered Meredith's brain. She felt a pair of strong arms around her waist and cuddled closer to her husband's chest. This was perfect. She was warm, and loved. She knew she was loved. It was such an amazing feeling, and she couldn't believe that it took her this long in her life to fully understand the feeling, and have someone love her.

She came so close to losing this too many times. When Addison came back, when she put her hand on a stupid bomb, when she drowned, and after that stupid fight they had earlier in the month. The fight was so stupid, but things were better and Derek made sure to shave everyday or at least every other day. She was happy. Meredith could finally say that she was incredibly happy for so much in her life. Her kids were amazing, her husband was the best she could have, and she was finally on track and happy with her job. This Thanksgiving she was so thankful for so much. It was also Michael's first Thanksgiving.

She knew she should get up and get her kids ready. They were spending another Thanksgiving at her old home where Izzie was hosting the dinner and she knew that Izzie would go all out. She should get up, but now in this moment she didn't want to move. She was content with laying in her husband's arms as he breathed softly on her neck and held her tight, like he would never let go.

She turned in his arms and looked at his face. He was still sleeping and his lips formed a small, soft smile. His hair was a little messy, but adorable. Looking at him, she could see the same features reflected in her son's. Michael had the same raven colored hair that sprang out when he slept, he had the same mesmerizing blue eyes, and when they were together smiling and laughing, they had the same smile. The smile that got Meredith to fall for everything Derek said, and the smile she knew would cause Michael to break a few girls' hearts. She just hoped their son could be as amazing as Derek.

"Why are you staring at me?" he asked her, his eyes still closed.

"How do you know I'm staring at you?" Meredith asked.

"I don't need to open my eyes to read you. We've been married for six years." He told her, holding her tighter to his chest.

"Hmm…I've loved every minute of it." She answered.

"Me too," he responded, finally opening his eyes. She was met with the perfect blue eyes she fell in love with.

"What're you thinking?" he asked.

"Just how happy and lucky I am. I love you." She told him.

"I love you too, so much Mer." He told her, kissing her tenderly.

"It's Thanksgiving." She said.

"I know, Happy Thanksgiving." He said. "I'm so thankful to have you as my wife."

"I'm thankful to have you too. Our little angels are going to be up soon." Meredith said with a smile.

"Hmm…we still probably have about forty-five minutes." Derek said with a smirk.

"Hmm…well then. I guess we have some time to kill. Should we get up and get ready for today?" she asked, playing with the hair at the nape of his neck.

"We could…but I think we could find something else to do." Derek said, leaning in to kiss her neck. Meredith tilted her head, allowing Derek to have more excess to the sensitive skin on her neck.

"Really? What would that be?" she asked with a giggle.

"Sex." He said in a soft whisper against her skin, causing chills to run across and prickle her skin.

"No," Meredith said, causing Derek's head to snap up and look at her with a confused look. "What?" he asked.

Meredith giggled loudly at his confused expression. "I want you to make love to me." She answered, smiling at him.

"Oh…definitely." Derek answered, trailing kisses down her neck to her collarbone.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Momma! It turkey day?" Grace asked an hour later as she entered the living room where Meredith sat watching cartoons while feeding Michael.

"Yes baby girl, today is turkey day." Meredith answered with a giggle.

"We goin to Aunt Iz?" she asked looking at Meredith. Her soft curls were messing around her head but looked completely adorable after just waking up. She was still in her footie pajamas and looked so comfy.

"Yep, after we have breakfast and get ready, then we'll go over to Aunt Izzie's a little later." Meredith answered.

"Yay!" Gracie cheered as she hoped on the couch and sat next to Meredith to watch the cartoons.

"There's my favorite girls," Derek said as he entered from the kitchen with two mugs of coffee. He set Meredith's down on the table and kissed Gracie's head softly. "Hi princess."

"Morning daddy," she said returning the kiss and a hug before turning back to her show.

"Morning bud," Derek said, running his hand across Michael's head.

"Want to burp him for me?" Meredith asked.

"Of course." Derek said, taking his son into his arms and holding him up to his shoulder gently patting his back.

Meredith sat and watched Derek talk softly to their son and smiled. He really was a great dad. She knew he was when they had Grace, but when he got his baby boy he was thrilled and he knew they shared a special bond and that Derek couldn't wait to take their son fishing.

She looked down at Grace and pulled her into her lap, wrapping a blanket around them as they cuddled into a cocoon. She took a deep breath and inhaled the scent of her daughter. She smelt clean and had a little girl scent that she loved. The fumes from her shampoo and soap mixed together with her natural scent and she was comforted by it. She wasn't even watching the cartoon, instead she sat curled up with Grace and closed her eyes basking in the moment.

Derek held their sleeping son and looked over at the couch. A smile crept on his lips as he took in the scene of his beautiful wife holding their princess. In these moments he loved just watching her interact and cuddle with their daughter. Grace looked so much like Meredith and he loved it. She was gorgeous and every feature was replicated onto Gracie. He loved his life.

He continued to watch as his wife dozed off cuddling with their daughter before he stood up and moved over to the couch. "Gracie, I'm going to go make breakfast. You can stay in here and watch cartoons but try not to wake mommy. She's comfy and sleepy right now. Come get me if something happens. Michael is going to be in his play pen in the kitchen with me. I'll come get you when breakfast is ready." He told her softly to not wake Meredith.

"Kay, daddy." Gracie responded.

Derek moved to the kitchen and placed Michael in the play pen before he turned to the fridge and pulled out the supplies to start making pancakes. He made himself some eggs and the girls some pancakes with chocolate chips and whipped cream. After the pancakes were done he moved back to the living room and told Gracie that her food was ready, and she gently moved away from the T.V. and made sure to not wake Meredith.

Meredith had been working longer hours at the hospital lately to help her be able to get days off for Christmas when they went out east to see Derek's family. Derek felt bad that she had to work harder for her to be able to get the time off, but he was so excited to see his family. He was also grateful that she volunteered to work extra hours to see his family, which meant a lot to him.

He settled Gracie in at the dinner table before cutting up her pancakes and pouring syrup on them. His daughter dug in eagerly, just like her mother. He pulled her hair back to keep it from getting in the syrup before moving back to the stove and making him some eggs.

"You shouldn't have let me fall back asleep out there," Meredith said as she came up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist before pressing the side of her face into his back.

"I know, but you've been working crazy hours lately and I wanted you to be rested for today. Also, you looked so cute curled up with Gracie. I didn't want to interrupt that." He answered, turning the stove off before placing the eggs on a plate. He turned in her arms and wrapped his own around her, pulling her close to him.

"Thank you," she answered, standing on her tip toes to kiss him. "I love you."

"God, I love you so much." He said, kissing her deeper.

"Der…the kids." She said with a giggle.

"Sorry, got carried away." He answered, kissing her tenderly before pulling away and handing her a plate with pancakes on it.

"Hmm…you really do love me." She said with a giggle before eagerly taking the plate.

"I do." He said with a nod.

Meredith took the plate and sat down next to Gracie before digging in. Derek joined them at the table with his own plate and they enjoyed Thanksgiving breakfast as a family.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Meredith had just gotten out of the shower. Before she got in the shower she got Grace dressed for the day and Derek was supposed to have taken care of Michael while she was in the shower. She moved to their walk in closet in her towel and stood in front of her clothes trying to figure out what to wear.

"Well, this is a nice view." Derek said, standing in the doorway while he leaned against it with a smirk.

"I just got out of the shower. I can't decide what to wear." She told him.

"I think you look perfect just like this," he said, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her bare shoulder.

"Derek, don't be an idiot." She giggled.

"You're gorgeous, Mer." He told her, planting more kisses along her shoulder.

"Derek, we don't have time for that. We have to get ready and go to Izzie's." she told him.

"But I much rather be doing this." He said, spinning her around and wrapping her in his arms before he passionately kissed her.

"Der, as much as I would love to do the same thing, we really have to get going or we're going to be late. Is Michael dressed?" she asked.

"Yeah, he's all ready to go." Derek answered.

"Good, now all I have to do is get dressed, do my hair real quick and make sure Gracie's hair looks good too." She answered.

"I did her hair." He told her.

"Exactly, I'll have to re-do it." She giggled.

"Hey, I can do her hair." He told her.

"Yeah…it's just better if you don't. I love you Derek, and you're an amazing husband and father but you are so not supposed to do my daughter's hair." She told him.

"Fine, but when it comes time for Michael to need to work with his hair, I'm in charge."

"Of course, I wouldn't even think about doing it. I know better than that. No one is allowed to touch your hair, everyone knows that. Well, except me." She said, running her hands through his hair and smiling as he relaxed into her touch and sighed softly. "You love when I run my hands through your hair, and when I pull it during sex." She whispered.

"Mer," Derek groaned.

"I already told you, no time for that. Now leave so I can get dressed." She said.

"No, I'd rather stay and watch that." He said.

"Leave, or you won't see me undress tonight." She warned.

"Leaving." He said with a chuckle before turning and finished getting their children ready to go.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"Happy Thanksgiving!" Izzie greeted as she opened the door to Meredith holding Michael and Derek holding Grace.

"Happy Thanksgiving Iz," Meredith answered, going in for a hug.

They all said their greetings and after deposting their coats and shoes they moved into the living room where everyone already sat. Cristina was sitting with Owen and Katie was excitedly talking to Gracie. Izzie was heading back into the kitchen to finish making dinner and she assumed that was where Lexie was too. Mark and Alex were lounged on the couch as the kids were heard from the play room.

"Go sit with the guys and start watching football. I'm going to go in the kitchen and see Lexie. Want me to bring you a beer?" she asked.

"Sure, thanks." He said, kissing her softly before sitting down on the end of the couch next to Mark.

"Hey man," Mark said.

"Hey guys, happy Thanksgiving." Derek said before turning his attention to the T.V.

"Hey," Meredith said as she entered the kitchen holding Michael.

"Hey Mer, hey Michael. Look at you! You're getting so big!" Lexie said, grabbing the little boy.

"Yeah, he is. Seems like yesterday I just found out I was pregnant with him." Meredith said, running her hand over his curly dark hair.

"He's so cute." Lexie said smiling at him.

"Don't tell Derek that, he'll just say it's because of him since he looks like Derek." Meredith said with a giggle. "Do you mind watching him while I take Derek a beer?" Meredith asked.

"I don't mind at all." Lexie said, smiling down at the little boy.

Meredith grabbed a beer from the fridge and moved towards the living room. She walked in the room and saw all the guys, and Cristina drinking beer and shouting at the T.V.

Meredith giggled as she sat on the arm of the couch next to Derek. "Here Der," she said handing it out to him.

"Thanks, Mer." He said taking the offered beer.

"Hmm…I can see you're busy. I'll come back in a little bit." Meredith giggled moving back to the kitchen.

"So, Lexie when are you going to start having babies? We've all done it, but you." Meredith said with a smile as she looked at Lexie looking down at Michael in her arms.

"Well, actually sooner than you'd think." Lexie said with a smile.

"What?" Meredith asked.

"I'm pregnant." Lexie said, unable to contain her smile or excitement.

"Lexie, that's great!" Meredith said, moving in for a hug. "Now, Michael here will have a friend. Does Derek know? Cause I guarantee him and Mark are going to start planning the boy's friendship from birth." Mereidth giggled.

"No, we were supposed to keep it a secret but I couldn't hide it with you asking me." Lexie said welcoming hugs from Meredith and Izzie.

"That's so exciting!" Izzie said.

"Have you gone to the doctor yet?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah, and everything is going well. I'm healthy and so is baby. I just have morning sickness that lasts longer than just the morning." Lexie said. "But it's totally worth it."

"It really is," Meredith said taking her son from Lexie's arms as he reached out for Meredith. "So, need any help in here Iz?" Meredith asked.

"Definitely not from you, Mer. Sorry." Izzie laughed.

"No, I get it." Meredith said. "I'll just go in the living room and sit with Derek and the guys as they shout at the T.V."

Meredith moved back into the living room and placed Michael in the bouncy seat so he could nap. She moved over back the arm of the couch since the rest of the seats were taken. "Hey Der," she whispered in his ear.

"Hey, Mer. Were you kicked out of the kitchen again?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Kinda, but I knew I would be so I left willingly." She said.

"Here, sit on my lap." He said, pulling her on his lap.

"I don't know if this is safe." She said softly.

"What? Why not?" he asked confused.

"Because, when you watch football with the guys you start to shout and you jump and move your arms around. It's funny, but I'm scared you'll jump up and I'll fall off or you'll hit me." She said with a small smile.

"I won't hurt you, that's just crazy." He said rolling his eyes, and wrapping her in his arms.

"Do you even like football?" she asked.

"Not as much as baseball, but it's ok to watch every now and then." He said.

"Do you want to hear some exciting news?" she asked, whispering into his ear.

"Always."

"Lexie is pregnant, but you can't tell anyone and you have to act surprised when they tell us at dinner." Meredith told him, watching the smile grace his lips.

"That's so exciting! Michael and their little Sloan will be best friends just like Mark and I are." Derek said.

"You don't know if it's going to be a boy yet, so don't get too excited." Meredith said.

"Oh, it will be. Time to even things out. Things are even right now with Grace and Katie and then Michael and Gavin, but once they have a boy we'll be in the lead." He said.

"Derek, that is the dumbest thing I've heard." Meredith said rolling her eyes.

"Then, the next one we have will be another boy and then we'll really be in the lead." He said.

"You're such an idiot. Who says I'm going to have more of your kids?" she asked.

"Well, we haven't talked about it, but…" Derek said, turning serious.

"Derek, we can talk about it later. I love having your babies though. We'll talk about it. But if I do, it's going to have to be in a couple years." Meredith said.

"Ok, I love you." He said.

"I love you too," Meredith said.

"Dinner is ready!" Izzie said, causing all the guys' and Cristina to turn away from the T.V. for the first time before standing up and making their way to the dining room. The table was lined with various foods; mashed potatoes, stuffing, turkey, corn, yams, and more than any had seen. Each couple took their seats with Grace next to Derek and Michael next to Meredith.

"Alright, before we dig in Lexie and Mark want to make an announcement." Izzie said.

"Ok, so Mark and I, well…we…we're going to…the thing is…"

"Gosh little Grey, you're almost as bad as Meredith." Alex said.

"Hey!" Meredith said.

"Sorry Mer, but it's true." Alex said, and everyone agreed.

"I think it's cute, Mer." Derek whispered and winked before kissing her cheek and then turned to finish cutting up Grace's food.

"Go ahead you guys'." Izzie said.

"I'm pregnant." Lexie blurted.

Cheers came from the group and they hugged the happy couple, even Cristina did keeping her grumbling to a minimum.

"The Shepherd and Sloan generation can live on!" Mark said with a happy smile.

"Only if it's a boy." Lexie and Meredith said in unison, sharing a smile.

"Ok guys, there's a lot of food so let's dig in and think of all the things we're thankful for." Izzie said, starting the dishes being passed around.

"I'm very thankful for you, Meredith Shepherd. You're a beautiful, sexy, wonderful wife and an amazing mother to my children. And you still give me sex, so I'm very thankful for that too. Thank you for sharing another Thanksgiving with me." Derek whispered in her ear, so only she could hear.

"You're welcome. I'm very thankful for you too, Derek Shepherd. You're handsome, and caring and definitely sexy. You're the best father I could ever imagine my children having and I'm glad I married you and started a family with you too. I'm also thankful for the sex, and your love." Meredith said with a smile. They shared a kiss, unable to let it go too far before people starting complaining, but when they pulled away they shared a loving smile. They would always remember this moment.

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**Cute right? I love writing them all lovey dovey! Let me know what you think, and everyone have a fabulous holiday if you celebrate it! **


	17. Christmas Love

**You guys are amazing. You always review and that makes me happy because that means you guys are still into this story and the family. **** So, thanks. Here's an update inspired by Christmas spirit.**

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"Meredith," Derek whispered in the dark as he turned his body to look at his wife. It was three in the morning and he knew she was going to be pissed at him for waking her up, but he had to talk to her. They had put the kids down to sleep the night before and had spent some time alone just watching T.V. and spending time in each other's arms. It had been just what they needed before heading to bed.

Now, Derek was awake and he couldn't go back to sleep. He wanted to talk to her. She always knew how to calm him down and make him go back to sleep.

The dream, or nightmare, he had just had hadn't helped either.

_It was a crisp winter morning in Seattle and Derek knew his wife had to go to work. A week ago they had made plans to go pick out a tree as a family for Christmas, but yesterday at work she was told she would have to work because of a patient she had helped operate on. Now, she was walking around their room early in the morning with just a towel around her getting ready._

"_Are you sure you can't have a quickie before leaving?" Derek asked from the bed as he took in the view of his beautiful wife. She stood in front of their closet picking out something to wear as her wet hair dripped onto the carpet and the towel wrapped around her body._

"_Derek, you know I don't have time. Take care of it yourself," she said with a giggle as she dropped her towel._

"_That's just…mean…and a tease!" he said from the bed before jumping up and pulling her in his arms. Her damp body pressed against his pajama clad body and he placed a soaring kiss on her lips, allowing his tongue to invade her mouth and kiss her passionately._

"_No, Derek." Meredith sighed breath-less._

"_Uh, fine. Go to work. The kids and I will spend the morning together eating breakfast and watching cartoons before their nap. Then, when you get home we'll go out and find a tree on our land and spend the rest of the night decorating it."_

"_Sounds perfect," Meredith sighed. "I'm sorry I have to work." She said, pulling on her underwear before stepping into a pair of jeans and pulling on a sweater._

"_It's not your fault, so it's ok." Derek told her._

"_I know, it's just…I feel like my mom." Meredith told him._

"_Meredith Elizabeth Shepherd. You are not your mother, and you never will be. Now, go to work. We'll be here when you get back and we'll pick out our Christmas tree as a family. It's our son's first Christmas." He told her with a loving smile._

"_It is. Ok, I'll go. Thanks, Der. I love you." She said, returning to his side to kiss him tenderly._

"_I love you too, Mer. Call me when you're on your way home." He told her before kissing her a last time. When she left their room he returned to their bed in hopes of getting an hour more of sleep._

_It was lunch time and Meredith still hadn't text or called him. He was starting to wonder if they would be able to go look for a tree after all. _

"_Daddy?" Gracie asked from the table where she was eating her peanut butter and jelly sandwich that was making a mess._

"_Yes, Princess." Derek answered with a smile, pushing aside his worry over Meredith._

"_Where mommy?" she asked._

"_Mommy had to go into work for the morning." Derek told her, picking up Michael from his high chair after feeding him a little bit of baby food. _

"_She come home soon?" Grace asked._

"_Yes. After nap-time mommy should be home." Derek told her with a smile before grabbing a bottle of formula and warming it up for Michael. "Keep eating your lunch. Daddy's going to go rock Michael and feed him his bottle so he'll nap. Stay in the kitchen and don't touch anything, your hands are sticky."_

_Derek climbed the stairs to the nursery and sat in the rocking chair to lull Michael to sleep as he ate the formula. He was growing up so much already, and he couldn't believe that it was already Christmas time. The kids still needed to go to the mall to visit Santa and tell him what they wanted, but those were the plans for next Saturday when Meredith had the day off._

"_Have a good nap, bud. Mommy will be home when you wake up. Love you." Derek said, placing Michael into his crib before shutting the door quietly and going back downstairs. As he entered the kitchen, he heard his phone and he hurried to answer it in hopes of it being Meredith._

"_Hey Mer, are you on your way home?" Derek asked with a smile._

"_Derek…it's Lexie." Lexie answered._

"_Oh, uh…hi. Why are you on Mer's phone? Is she ok?" Derek asked, suddenly worried. He looked over at the table and saw Gracie licking the strawberry jam off of the bread, and his heart broke. His wife's look-alike looked so cute as she dissected her sandwich, and he knew he couldn't break down or have a possible heart-breaking conversation with her in the room. He moved to the living room as he waited for Lexie to answer._

"_Derek, it's not…she's not…she was in an accident. She was getting on ferry to go home and another person's car slid into her, she…she didn't make it, Derek." Lexie told him softly, emotion evident in her voice as she relied the devastating information about her sister to her brother-in-law._

"_No…no! Not Mer! She's…she's my everything…no! That can't be right, Lexie! They have the wrong person, she's on her way home, I know she is…it can't be her." Derek broke down. Tears streaming down his cheeks._

"_Derek, I'm so sorry. Do you want me to come get the kids?" she asked._

"_No…they're fine. We're waiting for Mer." Derek said with a sob._

"_Derek, she's not coming home. She's gone." Lexie said softly._

_Derek slammed the phone shut and collapsed onto the couch. This couldn't be happening. The love of his life was gone, and he had to raise their two beautiful children alone. He thought of Gracie and broke down again, seeing the replica of his wife in her. He wasn't sure he would be able to go on anymore._

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"Mer, please, wake up." Derek said tapping her this time. His face was still damp with tears and he was jolted awake by the dream, but the after thoughts and the memory was still imprinted on his brain.

"Derek, what? It's three in the morning. What do you need? If this is for sex, you can forget it." Meredith said, before turning around and facing him. She opened her eyes and took in the tears in his eyes and the moisture on his cheeks. He looked distraught, and she knew something was wrong. "Derek, what is it? Are the kids ok?" Meredith asked, worry taking over her sleepy state.

"They're fine," he said, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her tightly against his body. He needed to hold her and have the reassurance that she was alive and still with him.

"Then what's wrong, Derek?" she asked, worried still by his behavior.

"I…had a horrible nightmare." Derek answered.

"Ok, tell me about it. Maybe I can help."

"You…you had to work and we had plans to go get a tree, like we're doing today, and everything was fine, we were going to do it when you got home from work. You left and I took care of the kids. Gracie was eating peanut and jelly and making a mess. I put Michael down for his nap and came downstairs to hear my cell phone ringing, I had been expecting your call so I rushed to answer it and it was Lexie. She said you had been in an accident. You were on your way home on the ferry and someone slid into you and you were…gone. I lost you, and I wouldn't believe it. I broke down, and all I could think about was that I had lost the love of my life and that I was going to have to raise our children all alone. And then I thought of Gracie and how hard it was going to be to look at her every day, because of how much she looks like you…I just…I broke down." Derek sobbed. The dream had felt so real.

Meredith wrapped her arms around him tighter and blinked away her own tears. She had never seen Derek like this, or this scared. He was sobbing in her arms, and she couldn't stop herself from crying as well. She hated seeing him this way. "Shh, it's alright, Derek. I'm right here. I don't have to work today, and I love you. We're going to pick out a tree, and decorate it. It's our baby boy's first Christmas. It's a happy day, Derek. I love you, I love you so much and I'm not going anywhere. I'm right here." She reassured.

"I know, it just…it felt so real." He told her, raising his head from her shoulder to look in her eyes. She moved her hand to his hair, and ran her hand through the messy curls, soothing him in a way she knew he loved.

He felt his body relaxed a little at her touch, and leaned down to capture her lips in a kiss, really making sure she was there.

"I know it felt real to you, Derek, but it wasn't. I'm here. I don't know how to make the dream go away for you. But I can promise that I love you with all my heart, and I love our family more than anything. I promise that I will fight as hard as I can to stay here in this life with you, I won't leave you willingly." She told him, kissing him again.

"I know, and I won't either. I just…I have to let this go. I love you so much, Meredith." He told her.

"I love you too, what can I do to help make you feel better?" she asked.

"Hmmm…I want to make love to you, Mer. I need to feel as close as I can to you." He told her, rolling on top of her and pulling her shirt over her head.

"I agree," she said with a little giggle as he placed kisses all along her skin. She could help her husband feel better about this dream; she was never going to leave them.

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Four hours later the couple still lay in bed, this time tangled in each other's arms and Meredith was the first to wake up this time. She looked at her husband and saw that the lasting effects of the dream seemed to be gone from his face. She hoped the same could be said about him once he woke up. She debated on rather or not to wake him up, but had no time to decide before she felt his arms grab her and pull herself underneath him. "Derek! I thought you were still sleeping!" she giggled.

"I felt you watching me," he answered, kissing her softly.

"Are you feeling better?" she asked. After their couple rounds of love making he seemed to be feeling better and they fell asleep soundly in each other's arms.

"I am, I'm sorry for breaking down last night." He told her.

"Derek, I'm your wife. You can break down in front of me whenever you need to, and you don't have to apologize for it. I love you, you know that." She told him.

"I do know that, and I still love hearing it. I'm so lucky to have you as my wife." He told her, kissing her again.

"I'm lucky too, and pretty soon our little angels are going to wake up and want to look for a tree." She told him with a smile.

"Yes they will, Gracie won't be patient till after lunch time, will she?" Derek asked.

"Probably not, she is your daughter." Meredith giggled.

"Hey! You love that she's like me." Derek chuckled. "And I am not impatient. I just love Christmas."

"You guys are cute." She told him. Michael's babbling was heard over the monitor at that moment and Meredith pushed Derek off of her. "Sorry, Der, my number one man needs me." She said with a giggle, seeing his facial expression in shock.

"Good morning my baby boy," Meredith said softly to her son as she pulled the little boy who looked just like his father out of his crib.

She went to the changing table to change his diaper before she felt Derek wrap his arms around her waist and kiss her shoulder.

"I'm going to forget your comment about me not being your number one man since you were referring to our son, but come nap time you're going to be saying something else entirely." Derek promised in a soft voice.

"We'll see, Dr. Shepherd." Meredith answered back with a twinkle in her eye.

"Meredith," Derek groaned, she knew what she was doing. He had been feeling much better about the dream, thanks to Meredith. Having her reassure him that she was there and would always be there helped. He still didn't know what exactly made him have the dream; it could have been because of his dad's death. Every Christmas Derek's thoughts were always led to his father, since he died shortly after the New Year. Maybe that horrible memory of his father's death was turning into a fear of losing Meredith at this time in their life. He hoped it went away and that he wouldn't have any more bad dreams.

"Daddy!" yelled Gracie as she found her parents in her brother's bedroom.

"Good morning, Princess!" Derek greeted, pulling her into his arms and placing a kiss on her blond hair.

"We get the tree today?" she asked excitedly.

"Yes we are, but not until after lunch." Derek told her.

"Why not sooner?" she asked.

"Because, mommy and daddy want to wait a little bit before. We have to get everything set up and ready for our tree before we can get it." Derek explained setting her down on the floor.

"Can we have pamcakes for breakfast?" she asked, her eyes pleading with him and he felt his heart melt at the look she was giving him, she definitely learned that from her mother.

"Anything for my princess," Derek answered, tickling her belly before she sprinted out of the room.

"You spoil her," Meredith said with a laugh with their son in her arms moving closer to him.

"Did you see that look she gave me? That look was the same one you use. It's your fault Mrs. Shepherd." Derek said, pulling her closer to him and placing a kiss on Michael's head filled with his raven curls.

"You love that she looks like me, don't pretend you don't." she said with a giggle before handing their son over to him.

"I do love that. And her giggle, stubbornness and love for pancakes. She gets all of that from you." Derek said with a smile.

"Whatever, Derek. That little one in your arms is going to be just like you, and if he's anything like the stories I've heard from your mom then we'll definitely have a handful." Meredith giggled before exiting the room.

"You're going to be the perfect little boy, aren't you, bud?" Derek asked the little boy, receiving a giggle and babble out of Michael. "We love our Shepherd women, especially that mother of yours. She's amazing." Derek said with a smile.

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"The kids are going to be up soon, we need to get dressed." Meredith said, lying on top of her husband naked after a round of love making during nap time.

"Hmm…just a little bit longer. I like holding you, and this feels completely perfect." He told her, his arms wrapped around her and one of them running across her spine in a soothing way.

"It does feel perfect, I love these moments." She told him, her head resting over his heart and she could hear the steady, soothing rhythm of his heart.

"Me too. I never want to lose this with you. Feeling so completely, madly in love…I just never want to lose that. I never want to lose you." Derek said, tightening his arms when the thought of his dream came back.

"You won't. We won't. We'll always have this, Derek, and you'll always have me." She told him, raising her head to look deeply into his eyes and seeing the fear from the dream there.

"It was just so…real." He whispered.

"I know…do you know what may have caused it?" she asked him, worry in her eyes as she ran a hand through his hair, coaxing him to tell her.

"I think my dad's death. It happened just after New Years, and Christmas time always reminds me of him." He told her.

"Tell me about him and Christmas time." She told him.

"Well, he was just like I am now actually. I think that's where I get my excitement for Christmas from. We would go out and find a tree and he would cut it down himself, and then tie it on the roof of our car. Then, we'd go back to the house and put lights on it and add our ornaments. There were always ornaments my sisters and I made. None of them were store bought. The tree would look amazing, and then each year we took turns switching who had the honor of putting the angel on top of the tree. Afterwards we'd sit down around the fire and watch a Christmas movie with hot cocoa. My parents would be sitting on the couch curled up in each other's arms and sharing kisses and soft words, they were so in love. And the girls and I would sit in front of the T.V. with blankets and pillows. Our whole house was decorated. With lights outside, and mistletoe and garland in the house. It always looked beautiful. I miss him so much around this time. I just…I wonder what he would say about me and how I am as a father and husband. And even a doctor. The curiosity and thoughts just always get to me, and this year I guess the death brought new nightmares and it included me losing you, which is my worst fear. I can't lose you, Meredith. I…would break down. I wouldn't know how to move on, or take care of our kids or be a doctor anymore. I wouldn't be able to do it. And that scares the hell out of me." He told her, tears in his eyes.

"Oh, Derek. Your dad sounds like he was amazing, and you know what? You're just like him. We're setting traditions for our kids now, and I think they should have the same memory you have. We're doing that now. We're going to get a tree; you can chop it down and tie it to the car. When we get it home we'll put ornaments and lights up. We'll pop in Elf for the kids and let Grace have hot chocolate and we'll light the fire. Then, you can curl up with me on the couch and keep me warm and kiss me all you want and whisper whatever you want to me, because I want us to be like your parents." She told him.

"We are like them. I really think we are. From the memories I have of them together, I know we are. The way my father looked at my mom, is the same way I look at you. And I learnt how to treat the love of my life from him. He always told me to find a woman I knew was my soul mate. Someone I couldn't live without. And I did that. I want to create that memory for the kids, I want them to remember each Christmas the same with new stories and I want them to see and always remember how much we love each other." He told her, smiling his dreamy smile.

"They will. I love you so much, Derek. You know I never thought I'd have this life. The love you give me, the marriage we have, this beautiful house we built and our amazing kids…I never would've had that if you hadn't walked in that bar that night. We may have started as a one-night stand, but we've come so far from that night. And, your dad is proud of you. I never met him, and I hate that, but I feel like I have. From the stories you've told me, and what your mom has told me about him, you sound a lot like him. He would say that you've become such an honorable, loving, incredible man. That you've succeeded in winning the dad-of-world award, because the way you are with our kids, the way you're able to discipline and still have that friendly relationship with them amazes me each time. They love you, and their faces light up each time you walk in the room, you also have Grace wrapped around your finger. And, I can tell you exactly what he would say about you being an amazing husband. You love me no matter what, you fix me after all the crap that has gone on, and you make me laugh and giggle when I'm in the worst mood, you make me feel so much love, and feel so loved and no one has been able to do that for me. You're the first person to really love me and I am so grateful for that." Meredith said, tears streaming down her face. She never expected for this conversation to turn this way, but he deserved to hear how grateful she was for his love. "And as a doctor, Derek, he'd say that you've done an amazing job. That you've worked your butt off to become the Chief and that you deserve it more than anyone, but that you put your family first and didn't want to be absent in our children's life and you turned it down. And that makes you an even more honorable man, doctor, father, and husband. He's proud of you, Derek, I know he is." She told him, resting her forehead against his, wiping his tears away.

"Thank you, I needed to hear that." Derek told her.

"And one last thing Derek, you won't like me saying this, but if something did happen to me…and you met someone that could make you happy and be a good mother to our children, I would hate if this had to happen and the thought makes my stomach churn, but I'd want you to move on." She said softly, looking away from him. The thought of her losing this happiness, losing this love, and another woman being with her husband and being a fill-in mother for their children made her heart hurt and tears well in her eyes.

"Meredith, no. Stop it now. I won't listen to this. I love you, and I can't handle anything happening to you. But I can promise you that if something did, I would find a way to raise our children and make sure they have as good of a life as possible without you. I could never find another woman, because no other woman will be able to make me feel the way I do with you every moment." Derek said, clearly upset by the thought.

"Ok, I'm sorry. I couldn't either. I'd raise our kids as a single mother. I love you too much, and I respect our marriage and love too much to let another man in my heart or our life. I love you, Derek." She told him.

"I love you too," Derek said. "Well, naptime turned depressing." He said with a chuckle.

"Not all of it, we had amazing sex, and we figured out why you had that dream, and I told you everything that's amazing and so loveable about you. And we even decided a Christmas tradition to have with our kids. It was successful. Now, when our little girl wakes up and starts jumping up and down to get a tree we'll pile in the car and go search our land." Meredith told him, kissing him tenderly.

"Thank you, Meredith." Derek said, kissing her again.

"For what?" she asked.

"Making me feel better, and saying everything you did." He told her.

"No need to thank me, like I said before I'm your wife, and everything I said was true. I love you more than anything, Derek. It's nice to be able to help you when you feel dark and twisty instead of it always being me." She told him.

"You were amazing, you're such an amazing wife. You make loving you so easy. You say that I'm the first one to ever love you, but you make it so easy to be completely, head-over-heels in love with you." He said kissing her passionately.

"Thank you," Meredith said, curling deeper into his embrace. They dozed off for a little bit before Meredith woke again. "Derek, we really need to get up. We're lucky Grace hasn't woken from her nap yet." Meredith told him softly, before kissing his chest a few times then leaving the warmth of his embrace to put her clothes back on.

"We need to get away for a weekend soon, I miss just being naked and lazy with you." Derek said before pulling his shirt on.

"I know, me too." Meredith said with a giggle, wrapping her arms around his waist after they were both dressed.

"I love you," Derek said, unable to say it enough.

"I love you, too." She said, kissing him passionately before pulling back and grabbing his hand to pull him out into the hallway.

"That one!" Gracie yelled from the backseat as Derek drove the snowy pathway around their land. The family was bundled up, ready to pick out the Christmas tree that Santa would leave presents under.

"Are you sure, Grace?" Meredith asked from the front seat, turning the Christmas music on the radio down to hear Gracie better.

"Yeah!" Grace cheered.

"I guess you should pull over," Meredith said with a smile.

Derek got as close as he could to the tree that Grace was so adamant on getting and turned the engine off. Derek and Meredith both shared a smile then exited the car, each turning to the back seat to get a kid out of the car seat. Meredith held Michael close to her, bundled up in his winter coat and warm blankets, and he cuddled into her body heat. Derek pulled Grace out and laughed at how cute she looked bundled up in her winter hat, gloves, and puffy coat. She was excited for Christmas.

"Let's get our tree, Gracie bug." Derek said, carrying her towards the tree she wanted.

"This one?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah!" Grace said, looking at the tree. It actually looked close to picture perfect. It was all green with no brown needles, and it was full at the bottom and slimmed nicely with the height. She had a keen eye on picking out their tree.

"Ok, hold Mommy's hand while I cut it down." Derek said, going back to their SUV and grabbing the saw he brought with them.

Meredith stood with the kids and giggled softly at the image of Derek cutting down their tree. He got the hang of it after a few saws and the tree fell into the blanket of snow six feet away from them.

"Der, do you need help with that?" she asked with a giggle as she noticed him cussing under his breath as he tried to pick it up alone.

"No, I've got it." He said in an irritated voice.

She knew he wouldn't admit to needing help, but she was going to. She went back to the car unnoticed and snapped both kids back in their car seats before walking back to Derek's side. She carefully placed her hand on his shoulder and got his attention. "What?" he asked frustrated.

"I'm going to help you. Grab the big end, I've got the top." She said with a smile as she went to the top of the tree and picked it up.

"I can do it, Mer." He told her, but did as she said.

"I know you can, but I want to help. It's Christmas time and it's our tree, I can help." She said with a smile. He smiled back at her and she was happy that she was able to relieve his stress from the tree and make him smile again.

After they got the tree on the top of their car, they moved back to their house singing along to Christmas carols and Michael just babbling to the music. They made it to the house and Meredith took the kids inside before moving back to the garage to help Derek carry the tree in. With some grumbling and frustration they finally got the tree in the stand and stepped back to look at the job they accomplished.

"It looks straight." Meredith said, stepping back and crossing her arms across her chest.

"It does, thanks for your help Mrs. Shepherd." Derek said, wrapping his arms around her and giving her a tight hug, then settled on just holding her a minute.

"You're welcome, Mr. Shepherd. Thanks for being a big, strong man and cutting us a tree down." Meredith said with a giggle.

"I can't tell if you're mocking me or not." Derek said.

"No mocking. It was sexy watching you cut that tree down. I could just imagine all your muscles being used while you sawed it down for your children, very hot." Meredith said in a seductive voice then kissed him.

"Meredith, don't start something you can't finish." He told her with a smile.

"I can't finish it now, but after the kids are in bed I can." Meredith said, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him passionately. "Now, let's go get our kids so we can decorate the tree together."

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"Did we replicate your childhood memory well?" Meredith asked as she settled next to him on the couch with hot chocolate in her hands to hand to him. He took it with a smile and raised his arm to pull her nearer.

"Pretty close." Derek said, taking a sip of the chocolate drink looking up at his daughter as she giggled at the television.

"What's missing?" Meredith asked.

"Well, we got the hot chocolate, we got the beautiful tree all decorated with our ornaments and lights, we have the fire going…"

"So, what's missing?" she asked.

"Well, our little boy fell asleep at the end of decorating and is now in bed. It'll be complete when he's older and can stay up with us and watch the movie with his sister. Also, I'm supposed to be holding you and trying to make moves on you." He said with a chuckle.

"You never said anything about making moves on me." She giggled.

"Well, that's where I'm doing my own editing. Plus we're sitting right under the mistletoe." He said with a laugh and they both looked up at the ceiling that the plant hung from. Setting their drinks on the coffee table before pulling her into his lap and pulling a blanket over them. They were both in their pajamas and her giggle made his heart soar. He loved these moments. He kissed her softly before pulling back and placing more on her neck and collarbone.

"Derek, Grace is in the room still." Meredith warned.

"She's into the movie." He said, kissing her more and hitting the spot under her ear that he knew made her lose control. She pulled his head up to hers and placed her lips on his, sliding her tongue into his mouth and running her hands through his hair.

"Derek, we have to stop." She told him, becoming more aware of their surroundings when she heard him moan softly.

"Fine, I'll just hold you and sneak little kisses." He said softly, pulling her tighter against him under the blanket and kissing her softly on her cheek. They turned their attention to the movie and smiled at their daughter's giggle.

Derek turned away from the T.V. and looked around the room. Their tree was decorated and illuminated by blue lights, ornaments that Gracie had made in pre-school were on the tree along with ornaments from their first year in marriage and first Christmas ornaments for Grace and Michael.

Garland was up on the mantel surrounding their picture frames of the family, and their stockings hung below lined from Derek's, Meredith's, Grace's, and Michael's new one. The fire crackled below the stockings and it looked like a picture from a Christmas movie.

Elf was the movie they picked for the night and Gracie loved it. She was seated right in front of the T.V. with her pajamas on and her pillow and blankets with her. Her hot chocolate was in a sippy cup so she didn't spill it, but she loved the Christmas spirit. She cracked up at every funny or silly part in the movie causing the room to be filled with the giggle she inherited from her mother, and he beamed. Meredith was in his arms laughing along with their daughter, and his life couldn't have been more perfect in that moment.

Well, maybe if Michael was with them. The little one had fallen asleep after they showed him the lights on the tree. His deep blue eyes sparkled at the lights and he stared in amazement as they danced in his eyes, but after that he had no interest in the night activities and fell asleep. Meredith rocked him and fed him his night bottle before putting him in his crib.

She returned with hot chocolate and cuddled in his arms, making everything fit in the room. He was feeling much better now that he had started a tradition with his wife and their children. He was so excited to share his tradition with them, and he hoped they always looked back at it when they got older as well. In this moment, he felt just like his parents. He remembered sneaking looks at his parents as the family watched the Christmas movie. He would discretely turn his head and see his parents wrapped up in each other's arms and a blanket. They shared loving looks and kisses and the look in his father's eyes was still imprinted in his memory. His dad looked at his mom the same way he looked at Meredith. He knew they would make it. After everything they had been through, they would make it. They were in love, and this Christmas was going to be the best one yet to date.

He couldn't wait to keep making this a Christmas tradition. He leaned down and kissed Meredith again, just stealing one kiss out of many more to come.

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**Wow. This one is super long. Sorry for it being so long, but the inspiration came and just kept flooding and I wanted them to have Christmas moments and love in the chapter, so it just kept coming. I had thought of posting two chapters, but really what's the point of that? So I just made one. I hope you guys' liked it. I'll have a Christmas update sometime during the Christmas week. Merry Christmas and happy holidays! Thank you for reading and please review! :D **


	18. Valentine's Day II

**Hey guys. I know I said I would update during Christmas break, and you were probably expecting a New Year's update as well, but I was busy and had no inspiration. But, since it's almost Valentine's Day and we all know Derek is romantic and Meredith and him have such a powerful love so they deserve an update. So, here you go! **

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Derek, wake up." Meredith whispered in Derek's ear.

"What, Mer? Are you ok?" He mumbled, not even opening his eyes yet.

"Yeah, I'm fine. But wake up."

"Mer, I had a late surgery last night. I want to sleep." He told her.

"You rather sleep than have hot morning sex with your wife on Valentine's Day?"

"Hmmm…no. I want sex." He mumbled before opening his eyes and rolling over so he was on top of his wife.

"Happy Valentine's Day." He told her with a warm smile before removing his shirt from her body and placing soft kisses along her chest and collarbone.

She let out a giggle from the scratchy feeling caused by his prickly facial hair that had grown the previous day since he'd been too busy to shave. "Happy Valentine's Day, Der. I love you."

"I love you too, so much." Derek told her before making love to her.

Two hours later the couple was wrapped up in each other's arms dressed as the sun rose and waited for one of their children to wake up.

Michael was almost nine months old, and growing up so fast. He had already started crawling, and he would pull himself up into a standing position while holding on to the couch. He was growing up too quickly according to his parents, but they loved that he was growing into his own person.

Grace was loving preschool and exited about the party they were having in school tomorrow and she had already picked out all the Valentine's cards she would hand out to her class.

Christmas had been amazing in the Shepherd household with the kids getting everything they asked Santa for. Meredith got Derek more fishing gear he had briefly hinted to her about, and some secret, sexy lingerie for herself, but was more for him. Derek had gotten Meredith a new charm for her bracelet, and some new scrub caps. They had the best holiday season and brought the New Year in with a small night spent with their family. It was perfect.

Now, it was Valentine's Day and the couple was ready to spend the day being Meredith and Derek instead of Mommy and Daddy. They loved their kids, and loved spending time with them, but now were the time to spend together.

"What are we doing for Valentine's Day?" Meredith asked with a sigh as she rested her head over Derek's heart.

"Out of the entire Valentine's Days we've spent together, have I ever told you our plans?" Derek asked her.

"No, but I thought it'd be worth a shot." She giggled as he chuckled.

"You'll love it, Mer. I've got everything set up like always. I love you, and this Valentine's Day is going to be great."

"Sex?"

"Of course, so far already."

"Are you still tired, or upset that I woke you up? I know you had a late surgery."

"No, I'm happy you woke me up. I like spending alone time with you early in the morning before our angels come in and want cuddle time."

"Good. I love you, Derek."

"I love you, too." Derek leaned down to kiss her passionately.

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"Mommy, are we going somewhere?" Gracie asked later that morning after breakfast.

"No, not that I know of. Why baby?" Meredith asked.

"Daddy said we were. He said Grandma wanted to have a sweep over with us and you and Daddy are going to spend Valentine's Day together." Gracie said as she told Meredith the latest news.

"Derek?" Meredith called out to him.

"Yeah, Mer?" Derek asked, entering the playroom and seeing his wife play with his adorable daughter.

"Your mom is having a sleep over with the kids?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah, she wants to spend Valentine's Day with them." He said.

"Derek, she had Grace last year. We can't keep giving our kids away on holidays." Meredith said.

"Mer, she asked for them. She wants to spend time with them. It's just convenient that she's here on Valentine's Day."

"Fine, but I know you're up to something." Meredith giggled.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Mrs. Shepherd. All I know is she's coming to get the kids for a sleep over after lunch." Derek said.

"Ok, whatever." Meredith rolled her eyes.

"I'm going to go back to the kitchen to make sure your son hasn't made too much of a mess with his peaches. You aren't getting anymore Valentine hints."

"Fine, Derek, whatever. Go take care of your son." Meredith said, smiling as she returned to playing with her daughter.

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"They're gone, now what?" Meredith asked.

After their naps and lunch Carolyn came and picked up the kids to take them back to her place and spend time with them. It sounded like the kids were going to have fun, and Gracie was very excited to have a sleep over and be spoiled by her Grandma.

"Now, we're going to go share a bath and get dressed." Derek told her.

"Get dressed?"

"Yes, sex doesn't come till later. We're going to dinner."

Derek held her hand and walked up the stairs to their bedroom and then entered their bathroom. He started to draw the bath and placed lavender bubble bath soap into it, then lit some candles that were placed around the tub.

"I'm so glad we got a big tub." Meredith said, before she started to strip out of her clothing and lowered her body in the tub.

"It does come in handy." He said with a wink. He stripped then sat across from her in the tub. He grabbed one of her feet and started massaging it.

"That feels good. So far, this is a good Valentine's Day." She told him.

"Getting rid of our kids and enjoying a bath?" he asked.

"Yes, it's perfect. And the morning sex."

"Of course."

"Much better than last year, so far." She said.

"Oh right, last year you got mad at me for something stupid."

"I was pregnant with your son, and I didn't feel like celebrating. I didn't feel sexy."

"Well, you were. You always are." Derek said, smiling at her before he switched to her other foot.

"Thanks, Derek. So are you going to tell me where we're going to dinner?" she asked.

"Nope."

"Do I have to wear a dress?"

"You look amazing in a dress, but I guess you don't have to. I'm keeping it simple this year." He told her.

"Hmmm…ok." Meredith gave up and rested her head against the cool tiled wall and closed her eyes. This was perfect. Just spending time with her husband in a quiet bath was perfect.

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"You look hot, we should've stayed home." Derek said as he opened the Italian restaurant door for his wife.

He decided to keep it simple this year and wanted to take Meredith to the restaurant that they had often gone to when they were dating, and trying to get their relationship right. Now, it was still a favorite of theirs, but now they had a stable, loving, marriage and he wanted to celebrate with her at her favorite Italian restaurant.

"Hey, you're the one who said no sex until later." Meredith giggled.

They had enjoyed their relaxing bath, and then Derek surprised her with a gift. He had bought her a beautiful indigo dress that was strapless, and fell at her knees. It was beautiful, and she looked beautiful in it.

"I have no idea what I was thinking." He said before going up to the hostess.

He told her their name, and they were shortly seated at their usual table.

"This is nice, Der. We haven't been here in a long time. I thought you would've taken me to an expensive, fancy restaurant."

"Do you want to go somewhere else?" he asked.

"No, not at all. This is perfect."

"Ok, good. I knew you loved this place, and I do too, so I thought this would be better than somewhere else."

"It is, it's perfect."

They spent the rest of dinner talking about anything other than their kids, and work while sharing loving looks and smiles. Anyone in the room could see that these two were deeply in love and shared a passionate connection.

They returned home and spent the rest of the night cuddled up just watching movies, and spending time together.

"I love you, Derek. Thank you for an amazing Valentine's Day." Meredith said as she looked up at him. They were cuddled together on the couch and she was resting her head on his chest.

"You're welcome. I'm glad you had a good time. I just wanted to keep it simple. We're so busy with the kids and work that I just wanted to spend a quiet night with you. I love you so much, and I never want you to question that." He kissed her passionately and held her tightly.

"I never have questioned that. You tell me every day and you show me. I love you too, so much. Happy Valentine's Day."

"Happy Valentine's Day, Mer. Can we go upstairs now?" he asked with a grin.

"Yes, it's sex time." Meredith said.

She let out a giggle as he picked her up and carried her upstairs. They were still in love, and that would never go away. They'd always have that strong connection and love that people dream of having. They were soul mates, and they belonged together.

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**There it is. Nothing special, but an update. Again, sorry I wasn't able to update over the Christmas holidays, those are big ones and I just couldn't find time to write the chapters. I hope you liked the Valentine's Day one, they kept it simple since they're a simple couple. Review please! :D **

Happy Valentine's Day! :D


	19. Spring! :D

Hey guys! Have you had a nice winter? Haha, mine was filled with too much snow and many snow days but left me with no inspiration to write any chapters for this cute little family. However, it was beautiful here today so I've decided to update this story with some spring fun! Enjoy and thanks for still showing interest in this story! I appreciate it!

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It was April in Seattle, and surprisingly it was sunny out. They had a horrible winter with snow and ice, and now it looked like the bad weather was finally gone, and spring was here to stay. Meredith and Derek were lucky to have the day off of work, and started the day by cuddling in bed, before serving their children breakfast.

Gracie was still loving school and learning so much. She looked forward to going to school and being with her friends and learning new things. Meredith and Derek both knew that she would be more than ready for Kindergarten once fall came around.

Michael was ten months old and walking around the house almost perfectly. There were a few times when he would lose his balance, but he always got back up and started walking again. He was talking too. He knew mommy, daddy, and he called Gracie, Gray, but it was something. Their children were growing up and Meredith and Derek loved watching them.

"What do you want to do today?" Derek asked, entering the living room where Meredith was on the floor playing with Michael while Grace watched the Disney Channel. He came closer to Mer and kissed her softly on the head before sitting behind her and pulling her back towards his chest.

"Hmm…I don't know. It's supposed to be nice out; we should probably spend the day outside." Meredith answered, resting her head on his chest.

"We could take a walk around the land, the kids could play outside and we could wash the cars." Derek suggested.

"We could do that. Although I think I'll play with the kids while you wash the cars." Meredith said, smiling up at him.

"I don't think so. We're tag teaming it, it'll go by faster." He told her with a smile of his own as he leaned down and kissed her sweetly.

"Momma!" Michael yelled while smacking Meredith's legs.

"Looks like our little man doesn't like his daddy kissing his mommy." Meredith giggled then pulled away from Derek.

"I don't care. I like me kissing you." Derek said, pulling her back to him and kissing her again.

"Momma! Momma! Dada, no!" Michael yelled again before getting on his feet and moving to Derek's side, and tried to pry his father away from Meredith, making his parents laugh at his actions.

"Am I not giving you enough attention, Mikey?" Meredith giggled, before pulling her son into her lap and started tickling him.

Derek smiled as he watched his son giggle and try to wiggle free of Meredith's hold as she laughed along with their son. This was the perfect day, and he had the perfect family to share it with.

"Mommy! Mikey, shhhh!" Gracie yelled from the couch.

"Grace Elizabeth Shepherd, do not tell your mother to shush. She's playing with your brother, and you've watched enough TV today already. We're going outside." Derek told her.

"Sorry, mommy." Gracie apologized.

"It's ok, sweetie. Do you want to go on a walk around the land?" Meredith asked her.

"Yeah!" Gracie cheered.

"Ok, go get your tennis shoes on and get ready." Meredith told her.

Gracie got up and ran out of the room eager to go on a walk.

"She loves you more than me." Derek told her.

"They both do, it's because I went through nine months of pain for them, then hours of delivery for each and then hours in the middle of the night taking care of them." Meredith told him with a smile.

"Hey, I was there for all of that. I got you every food you craved, then I held your hand through delivery and let you yell at me, and I also got up with you to take care of both of them. We're even."

"We're even? Really? You've had two babies come out of your va-jay-jay?" Meredith asked.

"Well…no, but…"

"But nothing, I win."

"Fine you win, only because I love you so much for giving me those two beautiful children of ours. And because I want more."

"What?"

"More kids. You want more too, right?" Derek asked.

"Well, now isn't the time to talk about it, but eventually yeah I wouldn't mind. But Michael's not even a year yet, Derek."

"I know, not now, but eventually."

"Yes, eventually I would love to carry another baby of ours."

"Good." Derek smiled brightly at her.

The two got up from the living room floor and got their son ready and situated in the stroller before they headed off to the land. Gracie was in her Barbie jeep and ready to go explore the land. They looped around a pathway Derek made when they used to walk Doc, then they headed to the area where they often went after they had gotten married and looked out at the trees that led to the city. It was beautiful.

Derek pulled Meredith near and kissed her softly before he continued to push Dan with one hand, and hold her hand in the other.

Gracie loved driving her little jeep and when they made it to the little pond she was eager to get out and go to the board walk they built.

"Mommy! Can I put my feets in?" Grace asked.

Meredith giggled before answering, "Yes, but wait for me."

"We're going to put our feet in, wanna join us?" Meredith asked Derek.

"Sure, he's out I think." Derek said, referencing to their son.

"Yeah, he is." Meredith smiled, looking down at their son as he slept with his thumb in his mouth.

The family moved towards their daughter and placed their son in the middle of the board as they sat next to Grace. They all removed their shoes and socks before lowering their feet into the blue water.

"It's cold!" Gracie squealed.

Meredith and Derek giggled as she splashed her feet around in the water. "Mommy, can I swim in it?" Gracie asked.

"No baby, you don't have your suit or your swimmies with you." Meredith told her.

"But Mommy, I wanna swim!" Gracie yelled before crossing her arms in front of her, throwing a fit.

"Gracie, we aren't swimming today. And if you yell again you are going to wake your brother up and then we're going to head back to the house and you'll have to take a nap." Meredith said.

Gracie went back to her jeep and sat there alone.

"Ugh, I hate when she gets mad at me." Meredith sighed, leaning on Derek.

"It's ok, Mer. You had to yell at her, she wasn't listening and she was about to wake Michael up." Derek told her, placing a soft kiss on top of her head.

"Thank you, I love you, Derek. I don't know what I'd do without you." Meredith told him, looking up at him.

"I love you too; I'd be lost without you too." He told her with a smile.

XXXXXXX

They were back at home outside playing after dinner. Derek and Meredith were washing their own cars while Grace played with chalk and bubbles and Michael played in his excer-saucer. Meredith and Derek could see the two children as they washed the cars.

Meredith had finished soaping up her car and grabbed the hose to wash the soap off. She accidently ended up spraying Derek without knowing.

"Hey! You sprayed me!" Derek frowned.

"Sorry, I didn't do it on purpose." Meredith giggled.

"I think you did," Derek said.

"Well, I didn't." Meredith said, picking up the hose again and purposely sprayed him.

"Hey! That one for sure you did on purpose!" Derek yelled.

"What are you going to do about it?" Meredith said, watching the spark ignite in his eyes as he took the challenge.

"Oh, I'll show you what I'm going to do about it." Derek said, dipping his sponge into the water and ran towards her with it dripping soap.

"No!" Meredith screamed, running away from Derek while laughing.

They laughed as Derek continued to chase her until he finally grabbed hold of her, tackled her, and soaked her in the soap. The front of her shirt was drenched in water and soap and they were both breathless from laughing and running.

"I got you." Derek laughed.

"Yeah, I guess you did."

"So worth it." Derek said, looking down at her.

"My t-shirt's wet." Meredith said, looking at her shirt.

"Best wet t-shirt I've ever seen." Derek smirked.

"Yeah, how many more have you seen?"

"None in comparison to yours." He winked.

"So that means none. It's ok if you were a loser before you met me, Der, I still love you." Meredith giggled, running a hand through his hair as he still lay on top of her.

"Hmmm…you joke, but do you realize how badly I wish our kids weren't here right now?" Derek asked.

"Yes, I can actually feel how badly you wish they weren't here right now." Meredith giggled.

"It's not my fault."

"Actually, it is. You made my t-shirt wet, and you chased me."

"You sprayed me!"

"Oh, boo-hoo. You're hair still looks pretty, Der."

"Shut up." Derek said with a smile as he got up, pulling her up with him.

"You ok there? Or do you need me to spray you down with the cold water?" Meredith teased.

"I'm fine; just go change your shirt." Derek said, giving her a playful tap on her bottom.

Meredith left to change her shirt and when she came down stairs both cars were dried off and Derek was carrying Michael inside while a tired Gracie followed.

"Bath time?" Meredith asked.

"I'm thinking Gracie only needs a bath tonight. She was the one playing in the grass. I'm just going to feed him a bottle then put him to bed. Will you give her a bath?" Derek asked.

"Sure, I shouldn't have changed my shirt. It's just going to get wet again."

"No, it's a good thing you did or I wouldn't have been held accountable for what happened if you didn't."

Meredith giggled before scooping Gracie up in her arms and carried her upstairs. "I'm gonna give you a quick bath, baby girl, then we'll put you to bed. Ok?" Meredith asked softly.

"Ok mommy. Can I have play time in the tub?"

"Not tonight, I think you're too tired."

"Ok mommy." Gracie answered, allowing her blond curls to blend with her mother's as she rested her head on Meredith's shoulder.

Meredith ran warm water in the tub and filled it up to the right level as she undressed Grace and helped her in the tub. She quickly washed and conditioned her daughter's hair then washed her body with the baby wash that smelt like lavender.

Once the bath was done she wrapped Grace up in her pig towel and carried her to her bedroom to dress Grace in her pajamas.

"Do you want a bed time story, or are you too tired?"

"Too tired."

Meredith held back her shock and smiled gently as she placed Grace in her bed and pulled the covers up to her shoulders. "I love you Gracie bug."

"Love you, mommy." Gracie said softly as her tired eyes drooped and closed.

Meredith placed a soft kiss on Grace's forehead before exiting her room and closing the door softly.

"She's asleep, but you can still give her a kiss goodnight." Meredith told Derek as they met up in the hallway.

"So is he," Derek smiled.

They switched places and Meredith gave Michael a kiss good-night as Derek kissed Gracie.

Once done, they met up again in the hallway.

"Wanna change into pajamas and watch a movie?" Derek asked her softly as he pulled her near.

"That sounds perfect."

"Good."

They went back to their room and Meredith changed into a pair of her sweat pants and a shirt of Derek's while he changed as well.

Once they were changed they got some popcorn and ice cream and settled down on the couch in each other's arms to watch a movie.

"What movie?" Derek asked as he searched through the movies on demand.

"Hmm…something funny."

"Something action filled."

"No, funny."

"Action."

"Funny!" Meredith giggled as she climbed over Derek and tried to grab the remote from him.

"Ha! Got it!" Meredith cheered as she settled back on her side with the remote.

"Give it to me!" Derek laughed as he tickled Meredith and again found himself lying on top of her.

"No. I want to watch a funny movie." Meredith giggled.

"Will you give me sex?" Derek asked.

"If you let me pick the movie."

"Does that mean sex is after the movie?"

"Yeah, I'll give you all the sex you want after the movie." Meredith smiled.

"Then you can pick the movie." Derek said, pulling her onto his lap and kissed her neck then lips.

Meredith grabbed the bowl of popcorn and settled back against his chest in content. This was perfect.

"Hmm…I love you." Derek said, kissing her again.

"I love you, too." Meredith smiled. "Today was perfect. Our family's perfect, and our marriage is perfect."

"It was, and they are. You're the love of my life, Mer."

"You're the love of my life too, Der." Meredith said, turning to kiss Derek passionately on his lips.

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What'd you think?


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